Explanations
by BLFBH
Summary: Did Arnold believe Helga didn't mean what she said? No. The story continues, with questions being answered and decisions being made. Not everyone seems to agree with the plot now, though, and want to change the ending. Next chapter up quick to make up for
1. Wonders of Yesterday

Explanation(s)

Not a hundred percent accurate on the flashback, but best I could do. This is a revision of the first few stories, so, um, here you go. 

Summary: It's the Day After, and someone is yearning for some answers...

Disclaimer: Hmm, let's see, hah! Here it is! 'Disclaim- to disclose ownership of' or something like that. Well, there you go.

It was the day after. No, really, the Day After. That's what it would be called for years to come, for the residents of blocks 33rd to 39th street in the town of Hillwood would tell their descendents why and how they still lived there.

To be more specific, it was the day after two nine-year-old boys had defeated a big cooperation ho was about to tear down the neighborhood in question. Their names? Arnold and Gerald Johansson, with the help of an unknown teenage spy girl. If you want more information, look it up in the cities files.

Of course, these three weren't the only ones who were there when the bus came to a sudden crash when the driver fell faint. Some eyewitness accounts report that another person came out of that bus. The information on that is known only to the four in the bus. Yet only two know exactly why she was there. So, of course, no one has given her any credit of actually helping the two boys. Which is where we join the present happenings. 

After all the celebration had passed, one of the heroes finally went up to his bedroom, but sleep was very far away. This young boy was the Arnold who had been the key player the heroic rescue, but didn't really consider himself to fit that role. His best friend Gerald had gotten him in the celebration spirit, which he was in, yet something, was missing. Or more specifically, someone was missing.

This boy was the only one who knew basically all of the credit should go to one person, that person being Helga Pataki. You may ask why, but he wouldn't say. You may ask how, but there'd be no comment. Only if you looked into his thoughts and followed him as he talked to this girl. Which is, of course, what is about to happen.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

If you really knew who Arnold was, inside and out, and what he's experienced, et cetera, you'd come to the conclusion that this boy was really far-sighted. Of course, his mind didn't need reading glasses all the time, oh no. In fact, if he was seriously thinking about something, with no other thoughts in mind, he could figure something out easily. That's why he could help his friends so well. This was one of those moments.

How could you start at a certain point as to what he was thinking? You could start at the beginning. I can't give you exact dialogue through out the whole thing, but I can tell you what happened.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?---** Um, well, it's like a flashback, only, well, look at what it says above. **

Arnold saw a shadow behind a glass door talking on the phone. when he strained his hearing, he could hear Deep Voice's words in the distance as well as on the phone. He quietly set down the phone and creeped toward the door silently. Once he reached it, he slammed the door wide open and Deep Voice jumped back.

He crept back, trying to avoid the touch of Arnold. He cried out to not pay attention to the man with the voice changer. But Arnold kept pushing until he fell and his hat fell off.

Only 'he' was really a 'she'.

Helga G. Pataki to be more precise.

Arnold was shocked to find that the one who had helped him and Gerald so much was actually one of the people who would benefit from the destruction of his neighborhood. He asked her why, and she kept coming up with excuses, like "Because I love a good mystery?" Finally, he pushed to far. He said, "But I thought you hated me!" It was as if something inside of Helga took over as she said the words that would seem fatal to her.

Though she tried to hold the words back, she couldn't. "I don't hate you, Arnold," she started, and then the words seem to flow out more freely, as if she were trying to speak for the first time! "I guess you might say that I sort of like you. Heck, I might even like you a lot!"

When Arnold asked a final question, the thing inside Helga burst. "Criminy, can't a girl help out someone she loves!?" 

Arnold's eyes widened. "Love?"

"That's right, Arnold! I love you!" She started to lose control again and started walking up to Arnold, as he backed away.

Then she started rambling on. He heard the first bit, but his thoughts were on the shock. He got the basic point. After that, she acted really weird, and pretty lovesick. Something very un-nine-year-old like. Then she kissed him.

After they had saved the neighborhood, they looked at each other, and Arnold could tell that she was embarrassed. He was, too, but who wouldn't be? He asked if what she had said was true. "You really hate me, right?" And then she denied it all, saying it was all in the moment.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

'If you ask me,' thought Arnold, 'I don't think me trying to save the neighborhood would make a girl like Helga say she had volumes of poems about me if it weren't true.' It was all just really sudden, but if he thought about it, Helga supposedly "loving" him made a lot of stuff fit. The whole Summer thing, the fact that she pops up in places at awkward moments were some examples. If he didn't know better and weren't mature for his age, he'd shake it of. But maturity and experience comes with curiosity, and he wanted some explanations. The five dub-a-yous (W's), if you know what I mean. First he had to let her admit if or if not what she said up on the FTi building was true. That is, if it was, which was pretty likely to anyone else, but Arnold wasn't sure. And he wanted to know either now or soon.

That's why he got up from is bed then and went to satisfy his curiosity.

Well, how about that? Yeah, so it's basically the same, but I changed some things! Yes, I did! Okay, now, um, well, read the rest, okay?

~~Briana LFBH~~ 


	2. Questions

Explanation(s)

Well, got some positive feedback for this *she thanks you*, so anyway, here we go! + I just bought the movie! *!!!!!!* Sorry for the delay.

Disclaimer: Hey, Craig, my man! Yo, Nick-el-o! Say, ya think a penny, a Push Pop, and an Avril Lavigne burned CD will buy somethin' like Hey Arnold! What? No? But it's a Triple Push one! And Avril Lavigne rocks! And, and, I DON'T OWN IT!!!!! WAAAAAHHHH

Arnold grabbed his jacket from the desk chair and put it on. For an early August day, it was rather chilly. As he passed the living room, his grandfather said, "Hey, Arnold, where are you going?"

"Out," he answered.

"Alright, just be home in time for dinner. What are we having, Pookie?"

"Watermelon. Hai!" Arnold could hear the squabble as he closed the door and went to the bus stop.

Now that he was outside of the stronghold of his room, he could actually think more clearly. Unfortunately this just built on more questions instead of answers.

_Why does she like me? No, love me? And why me? What does she, uh, love me for? How's this going to change my life? Her life? Our friends' life? Did she really mean it? What am I supposed to say? Why is this bothering me? This was all way to sudden and way to complicated for a nine-year-old boy._

Bu-rooo, squeeeeeek! He had missed the bus. "Hey, wait, I'm still here!" he cried, but it didn't waver. "Man!"

He turned in the direction of Helga's house, not really knowing why or what he was going to say. He stuck his hands in his pockets and carried on.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}":?!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga was lying on her bed, looking up to her ceiling, poetry book on her chest. Her eyes were happy looking, but slightly doubtful. She didn't know if Arnold had accepted or not. He had smiled when he "denied" her, but how could she know if he was just hoping for the answer to be yes? Could it be that he was possibly, oh, say, telling her that it could be a secret? It was way to sudden and way to confusing for a nine-year-old girl. But she'd handled stuff since she was two minutes old, and she could handle stuff now.

If only Arnold could come over to her house and help her understand.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_ If only she can help me understand._

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Ol-gaaa!" yelled Bob from downstairs. She was way to exhausted, mentally and physically, to correct him.

"What, BOB?!?!"

"That little boy Arnie's here to see you! The one who ruined my big plans! He's already in, Miriam answered the door, not me!"

As soon as he said 'you', she jumped up. "Arnold! Coming to see ME? At my HOUSE?"

Just then a knock came through her door. "Helga?" said Arnold.

SMACK! A red spot appeared on her check. "WHAT are you doing here, Football-head? Shouldn't you be celebrating you glorious success?"

No, and, um, could I come in, please?" He was nervous beyond anything imaginable, but it was something he had to do. 

Okay, that's just way to weird. Oh, well, my beloved is coming in my room! I mean, keep it together, and don't kiss the lug!

"Yeah, whatever, Arnold-o." He opened the door slightly, as if checking to make sure it was safe first, then walked in completely. As much as they both tried to keep expressionless faces, they were both embarressed, Helga being love-stricken also. 

Arnold cleared his throat. "Uh, Helga?" he asked. "Can I ask you a thing or two?"

_There was a little thing in the back of my mind that was expecting this, Helga thought. She kept her glare. No use in letting him know she was skeptical/embarresed. "Whatever, just make it quick. I have important stuff to do, you know."_

"Okay, okay," answered Arnold. He sat down on the floor and grabbed the back of his neck. "Ah, this is gonna sound weird, but, er, uh, well, the thing is…"

Helga rolled her eyes. "Ugh, spit it out already!" (*Yeah, I wanna know!*)"Did you mean it when you said you loved on top of the FTi building last night?" he blurted out. Having it said, he flinched, not knowing what to expect.

I know, dontcha just HATE cliffies? Well, till next time, see ya! *Me, too!*

~~Briana~~ (*+ ^^Phebga^^)


	3. Do You Read Me?

Explanation(s)

Author Notes:Man, I knew ya'll would hate me for that cliffie! I got 8 reviews in less than 24 hours, though! Well, to ease your pain, here's the next chappie! And, no, it's not a pathetic, rushed one, it did take a while. And anyone who did have a heart attack *I know who did!*, plz don't sue! Well, here we go! Oh, and its really long! (Oh, tell me if they're OOC. I just figured out what that meant.)

Summary: * Basically, the two go over questions and what happened on FTi. What will happen next? Hey, don't look at me, I'm just the summary girl! And Gerald makes an apperance! *

Disclaimer: I'm a _fan_ writing fictional stories about something I'm a _fan_ of. That's why they call it _Fan_fiction.net. ~Does finger movements by her head that mean "duh"~

Helga had a really tiny feeling that things would come up to that. She had to play it cool and tough. Go with what she'd already said. "Of course not, Football Head! I thought we agreed that it was all just the heat of the moment!" A small pause. "Heh, um, you know how I feel! I hate your stinkin' guts!"

Arnold sighed. He had mentally prepared himself for that reaction. He knew it was something about her being troubled by her own insecruities, but STILL didn't know why she thought he'd buy that again. "Helga, I don't think you'd say and, uh, _do _all that stuff because of 'the heat of the moment'."

_Yeah, that was a bad excuse_, thought Helga. _But he's the person who's suppoesed to overlook everything. _"Yeah, well, I didn't mean it! I was just trying to, uh, um…" _Think of something fast, Helga! _"Make up a, um, excuse for helping you out. Yeah, that's it!"

An even longer pause was pulled out than the one before as Arnold gave her his infamous half-eyed-looks-bored intimidation look. He still didn't believe it. All that thinking over the last few days had _really_ reduced his density to an above average by one point level. Helga could feel a small sweat drop going over her forehead.

Finally (*I know YOU'VE been waiting for this*), she gave in. He might as well have known anyway. She sighed, then said pathetically, "Fine, Arnold. I, I mean, what I said, it was true. I, I lo-, I lov-"

"You love me?" Arnold offered.

Helga burst. "Yes, yes, I do! I love you, love you, love you! I've loved you for two thirds of my entire life, ever since I first saw you and that stupid, oblong head! I LOVE YOU, ARNOLD!!!!" She panted for a few seconds. "Satisfied?"

As anyone would have guessed, he didn't exactly answer right away. Finally, he nodded, but slowly. "So, uh, why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you, uh, _love _me?"

Helga sighed. Now that she'd said it twice, the pressure was off. Well, at least a little. He knew, and she knew he knew. "Sit down, Arnold, because this is going to take a while." She told him the story of that first day of pre-school, and how it advanced from that. Arnold could make a pretty good physciatrist when he grew up. Even though it was all about him, he only seemed slightly weirded out. She almost went into a swoon, but then she noticed Arnold sitting right in front of her and stopped.

"Okay, bucko," she said when she was through. "I mean, Arnold. You've asked two questions, so now it's _my _turn."

"Okay," he answered, to many thoughts going through his big head to even think of another question.

The girl sat down Indian style right across from Arnold and sighed again. "Okay. When you asked if I really liked you, and how I felt, and all that junk after we showed the document on the Scheckvision TV screen, were you just cutting me a break, or was that all real?"

His eyes narrowed as he thought about that. "I don't know. I guess part of me knew what you said was true. I mean, you kissed me and tried to kiss me two times-"

"Three," corrected Helga, blushing slightly.

Arnold's eyes got a little wider. "Three times, but then I guess I wanted to deny it, 'cause, I, um, well, you know-"

"Because of how I act towards you?"

"Yeah," he admited guiltily. "So, a little bit of both, I guess. Gerald's always telling me how dense I can be at some points, so that-"

"You mean other people realize it and not just me?"

"You wanted me to answer this right?"

"Yes. But you kinda already did. So my turn again. What are you going to say to anyone else about this?"

Just then a beep came from Arnold's pocket, then Gerald's voice was heard. "Arnold, Arnold, are you there?"

Arnold pulled out a two-way walky-talky from his pocket. "That girl, Bridget, never asked for them back," explained Arnold. He put it to his ear. "Yeah, man, I'm here."

"Sorry, Arnold," replied Gerald, "but I have to know now. First, why were you being such a party-pooper when they called us heroes, and second, WHY THE HECK WAS HELGA ON THE BUS WITH US!?!?"

Arnold had the walky-talky at the length of arm at the last part of the sentence. He looked at Helga. "Can you, uh, excuse me one sec?"

"Sure, bathroom's down the hall, talk there." _And I have a chance to be alone for a minute. Oh, Arnold, I've told you again, and now you believe…_ She got up and walked to her closet.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold walked into the bathroom, locked the door, and finished the conversation with Gerald. "For the first answer, because we couldn't have ever done anything without He- I mean, Deep Voice. No one gave her any credit, not even us."

"Whoa, whoa, wait. I have two more questions. Did I hear Helga earlier, and why did you call DV 'her'?"

"Shh. Let me finish. The second one, I can't say without Helga's clearence."

"Clearence? Man, you read to much!"

"Ugh. The third, yes, you did, fourth, because she, I mean, I don't know."

Gerald gasped from the other end. "You know who she is, don't you? Tell me!"

"Shuh! Can't, at least not now. Look, I'm in the middle of something really important, and"

"With Helga? Okay, what is up over there?"

"I can't tell you right now."

He gasped again. "Oh, she's Deep Voice! That's why she came in with you, she was following us and she told you what to do! But, why?"

Arnold hit his head. "If Helga wants to, oops."

"Ha, now I know it's Helga! Okay, okay, I'll back of, but you owe me some goods later, man. See if you can find a tu-tu in there!"

_Does this guy ever give up with those pictures?_ he thought. "fine, but Helga'll have to be the one to tell you."

"Hey, wait a sec!"

"Bye, Gerald!" He turned it off and walked back to Helga's bedroom.

Oh, I just got an awesome idea, but my hands hurt, so I'll have to leave you with another cliffhangar. *At least this time there wasn't such a delay for updating, you-know-who. So tune in next time! I've always wanted to say that!* Okay, so go surf some more! Wayer or microchips! *The spicy ranch flavored kind, oh, I love those!* ~Looks at Phebga weirdly~ *I had coffee this afternoon, girl!* Uh, well, bye!

~~Briana LFBH~~ * + ^^Phebga^^ *


	4. Roger That

Explanation(s)

Author Notes: I know, I'm evil aren't I? I'll try not to make another cliffie, but I'm not promising anything. Well, this seems to be my best story yet. Cool! *WHY are you jumping on the desk singing 'Everywhere'?* Ahem, uh, hope ya like. 

Summary: *Let me read the page…AAAHH! You're gonna like this! Biggest hint possible: Remember when it said she went to her closet, and then… This'll be toooo good. 

Disclaimer: Nick, Viacom, and Mr. Bartlett own the cartoon of which we speak of. Hey, does it look like we can draw? ~Trys to draw a tree but ends up like a rabid dog~ There, ya see?   

Quote Of the Chappie: "We're tough, we're mean. Darn it, we're carbon-based life-forms!"    Jimmy: J. N.: Boy Genius

Inside of the closet there was a ladder. Helga had moved the love-shrine made in Arnold's likeness up to the attic, since Miriam kept throwing them away and she had to keep making new ones with fruit. She had made this new one by placing the head of her old one on top of a large, standing stuffed bear. 

"Oh, Arnold!" she said. "I'm so happy that I've finally told you and discussed it with you! Now that I've told you and see how well you can understand my emotions, my deep desire for you has grown even more! The only doubt I have is how you feel for me. Also the fact that you may not be able to keep a secret Gerald, and that I'll probably yell it on the PA tomorrow if I could. But that's not the point…"

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"? 

Arnold walked out of the bathroom and retraced his steps to Helga's room. He had just looked at his digital synchronized watch, and noticed that even if he left now, he'd still miss out on dinner. Well, it was watermelon, and that didn't really fill him up anyway. He'd call his grandfather and tell him he'd be at least a little late.

He walked into her room, but found it empty. He looked around and saw little pink books all over the desks. He knew there had to be a reason why a big 'bully' would were pink all the time, and now he knew. As he looked around, he saw the closet door open and an unfolded ladder. Her walked in there and found a trap door. He reached his hand up to open it…

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga heard a creak behind her. She turned around and saw the trapdoor open just a bit. _He's learned a lot, and too much. There isn't any way that he's gonna see this!_ She ran to the door and shut it closed. But maybe it was a little to hard.

"Hey!" yelped Arnold after He;ga heard a thud. "What's going on up there?"

"Sorry, Footba-I mean, Arnold," she said hurriedly. "My, uh, my, dad, yeah, he won't let anyone up here but the family. I'll just go back down there and…" She opened the door just a bit and waited for Arnold to get down. To bad that she lost her balance and fell on him.

"Ow!" "Oof!" They landed in a heap at the bottom of the ladder. Helga's face landed in Arnold's hair, which, you could say, she liked, and Arnold almost had white shoe for dinner.

"Sorry," said Helga as she sat up. Arnold was looking at her weird. "What?"

"Why do you have a blue cape on and paint under your eyes?"

Helga's eyes widened as she zoomed back up the ladder. Unknown to Helga, Arnold followed this time.

When she was up she reached for a wet towelette and wiped of the paint, mumbling to herself. Then suddenly, she heard a bigger _thud_. That's when she remembered that Arnold right there by the ladder when she went up.

She turned around to see an unconscious Arnold on the floor of the attic.

I changed what it would have been slightly. *But it was better than him just figuring out, huh?* shut up. Well, I don't think this is a cliffie, but you be the judge. *Score: 10, for Curly fana-* Quiet! ~ A thud, then a Smile~ Thank you! *Uh, oh, ow*

~~Briana LFBH~~ *+ ^^Phebga^^*


	5. Scheduling a Meet

Explanation(s)

Author Notes: I guess the last was kind of a cliffie. I love the responses ya'll are giving me. I'm not bratty, but I'm happy. Uh, anyways, lets just get on wit da story. (And please tell me if they're IC or OOC)

Summary: *Basically, Helga revives Arnold and it gets really funny/weird/good after that.*

Disclaimer: (To Dilemma tune) I do, not own *Aw* Hey Ar-no-old *AW* Cuz it, belongs *Aw* to Craig Bartlett *AW* And no matter what I do *AW* I'll never get to own it. So just go along *AW* and know it doesn't. *Aw*

Quote Of the Chappie: "With great power comes great responsibility." Uncle Ben (What's his real name): Spider-man

Helga heard a small yell and a thud behind her and turned. Arnold was lying unconscious on the attic floor, in a position that meant he had seen the love shrine made in his likeness. _Oh no, oh no, oh no, he can't possibly know!_ But he did know, and it would bring a price to Helga. The price being total humiliation. Even though she would have liked him staying there and her running to Pheobe's house, she knew what she had to do. She really hated it when that happened.

"Oh, criminy," she moaned as she bent over Arnold and blew in his face. He twitched but didn't wake-up. Then she tried pouring some of the water she was using to wash of her face paint on his forehead, but he didn't revive.

She sat back and thought. "Arnold, I'm really sorry," she said as she lifted her hand and…

**_Smack!_**

"Ow!" yelled Arnold as he instantly sat up. When he did so, his face was looking square at the shrine. "AAAAAHHHHH!" he yelled, and fell back to the floor.

Helga's head fell back and she smacked her forehead. "This is hopeless." _He knows already, you ought to tell him, Helga. Wait, you can't! He saw it, and if you talk to him about it, he'll think you're a freak! But it's the right thing. Man, how come all my moral dilemmas have to do with him! Fine, I'll wake him up. I've gotten this far. Just this time, get in the way of his view._ "Okay, here we go again."

**_Smack! _**"Ah! Hey, what was that for?" Arnold said as he sat up. "Helga? Why did you slap me?"

She tensed up. "You really don't want to know."

Arnold's eyebrows furrowed as he thought about it. Then he remembered where and why he was up in the attic. He stared at Helga with wide eyes. "Was that…I mean, is there really a…"

Helga's head fell in defeat as she crawled away to let him see what was there. His eyes got wide again. "Helga," he began, "why is there a-"

"Its this thing I made to talk to and pretend it was you since I couldn't ever get the courage to talk to you and I talk to it more than I talk to Pheobe about my problems, okay? I go up here everyday and pretend that it's you. You'd be so easy to talk to if I knew you wouldn't respond badly like that thing, okay? Please, don't think I'm a freak, because it's like, its like, its, oh I don't know!" She said this all really fast and at the end, she broke down into a set of quiet tears, her head resting on the floor.

Arnold was still freaked out but amazed at what she had just said, or at least the parts he understood. When he thought about, it wasn't so weird. He sort of thought it was like him talking to Gerald, or him talking to Abner, knowing he wouldn't talk back and put him down. Also, a little part of him thought it flattering. It also pained him to see her crying because she thought he would disappoint her. "Stop it, Helga," he said quietly. "I don't think you're a freak. I understand it."

_Did I hear correct,_ thought Helga. She picked up her head and looked at him. One of her eyes got smaller as she thought how he couldn't think it was a little bit weird. "You don't?"

"No. I get it. It's still just slightly strange, but I talk to a pig every night."

The girl smiled. _This is why I love him._

Arnold smiled back. _She's okay. She's not just the big bully everyone thinks she is, and now I know for sure. _"If it's all right with you, I'd like to get to know you better." _Whoa, This whole thing is making me feel really weird._

_Okay, this is really weird. _If Helga didn't know any better, she'd swear she'd probably had changed. Well, the entire reason she acted that way was to cover up herself and her secret, and that was about to change. She was still a bit hesitant, though. "Uh, well, okay, I guess. But don't tell anyone about this thing until I'm okay with it."

Arnold nodded, signaling he knew why. As soon as he said it, something that had happened early popped back into his mind.

"Oh, but, uh, we have slight problem."

Helga's head jerked up. "What kind of problem? You didn't tell Gerald, did you?" She stood up. "Man, if you did-"

"No!" he protested, standing up also. "Its just that I was talking to him about Deep Voice slash you, and I accidentally said 'she'. He put it together and knows that you are Deep Voice, and he also knows I know why you were. Well, I think."

Helga slumped down to the ground. "We are going to have to say something sooner or later to him about this, or he'll just guess. Eventually everyone will notice something different and come up with a reason, and if it's wrong we'll _have_ to tell them. Either way, it'll get out that I, uh, you know, love you."

He looked down at the girl who had turned his life inside out in about 24 hours. Apparently just this part of her life was difficult, but what about everything else? Her family (he figured there were problems), school, peer pressure, and everything else. He had always been an optimist about everything, so he could barely imagine her pressure, but he could sense it. She seemed so depressed, yet there was a beam of hope and expression inside her that he wanted to break free.

Then he thought about what he was thinking about this time yesterday. His only care was to save the neighborhood. 

Wait. What was the time. He looked at his watch. It was 9:15. But he couldn't leave like this.

He bent down next to Helga and but his arm around her shoulder. It was his instinct to comfort her, but he also wanted to help her out. "It's okay. Maybe if they know thing'll be better. Look, it's kind of late. Do you still need me here?"

Helga shook her head no in answer, but Arnold knew better. "Look," he said, "I'll come back early tomorrow and we can talk. I still have some questions. Is that okay?"

Helga looked up at him and smiled. She looked very pretty when she smile like that. "I'd like that. But can I ask you one more thing before you leave?"

"Sure. What is it?"

Helga chuckled. "Can I still call you Football Head? It's kinda stuck to my mouth like peanut-butter."

"I guess so," he laughed out. It's weird how such a serious feeling can go away by one comment or thought, isn't it. But soon it came back. "I'll see you tomorrow, Helga."

He squatted to go back into the closet when Helga said, "Good night."

When he was out of earshot, she whispered, "Good night my sweet prince."

In the words of Phil What's His Last Name: "Always leave them hanging for more, Shortman." Well, till next time, oyu review, I rest my fingers. *Yeah, can you feel them?* No. *So we hope you guys stay faithful.* Like my doggie is!

~~Briana LFBH~~ *^^Phebga^^*


	6. On the Path of Explaining

Explanations

AN: Sassy Angel, you were right, there is one brewing, but neither know it yet. I'm working next chapter, too, so don't think it'll be big cliffies. Oh, and this is SUPER TIME LONG! With a ho' bunch a stuff. Plus, I totally forget if Arnold told her Gerald knows about Deep Voice, so I'm going with a no. So, with out further a do.

Summary: *Well, basically, they talk more, just this time in the park. I'm going freestyle with this, so there'll be some stuff not in this summary. *

Disclaimer: See Chapter anything before this.

QOC: "I must be in Heaven now. Oh, no! Oscar's here! This must be the other place!" Dan Castella/Grandpa Phil: Uh, duh!

Hey Arnold!

Helga climbed down from her bed. She had missed dinner, but she was too happy to eat. Just the other week she had that dream in which she was married to him. It was like a dream come true: the burden of telling was off! Her love didn't think she was a freak! He obviously liked her; after he was quiet for five minutes you could tell. But the fact remained that she didn't know if he like-liked her, much less loved her. Well, the maximum test, if there was any, was over. He had seen the big shrine and didn't think it was too weird. Well, you knew he thought it strange, but not _too _weird. In only a few hours Arnold had uncovered her deepest secrets. But there was going to be now way he'd get much out of her today. Nope, this time it was all him and her with invisible duct tape on her mouth. She didn't want too much of her personal life out in 24 hours.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold got out of bed, at first not realizing what had happened that night. He was very tired from all of the questions his grandparents had asked upon his arrival at about 9:35 P.M. Why had he been late again? It was at that point that his stomach did a flip on the tight rope, shaking him to his senses. It was at this point that he realized how the, uh, 'situation' would affect him. I mean, he was relatively all right with it. But just the other week he had that dream in which he was married to her. Gerald knew one part of it, but he wasn't sure if he should talk to him about it without Helga's confirmation on it. Well, he was supposed to talk some more with her today. Well, if he was going to do this, then like they say: "There's no time like the present."

He got dressed and went through his hygenic routine. When he was finished he went downstairs to a breakfast of pancakes, which he ate whole-heartedly. Afterward, he called Helga to ask where they should go to talk.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

 "Helga, wake uuuupppp!"

Helga rolled her eyes and groaned. "I already am, Miriam!" 

She opened her door and stomped down stairs when she heard a loud voice behind her. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, little missy."

She stopped right in her tracks and turned to see a furious beeper king, who just happened to be her father. "What," she said angrily, "_Bob_?" 

"You didn't come down for dinner, Olga. You stayed up there talking to that Orphan Boy all night."

"Da-ad, it wasn't all night. And I wasn't hungry. And my name is _HELGA_!"

"Hey, hey, hey, don't you talk to me in that tone! Now, he stopped our big plans for big money!"

Helga raised one end of her eyebrow. "Dad, I heard you say that that Scheck guy would have gotten most of the money."

"That's not the POINT!" He raised his arms up in the air. "I don't want you talking to that boy anymore, ya hear me Olga?"

Helga's mouth dropped open. "Dad, its not like I'm, like I'm, in love with him or anything!" Of course we all know the answer to that True or False question.

Just then the phone rang. Helga could hear a whirring and snoring in the kitchen and figured that Miriam had fallen asleep while making a smoothie. "I'll get!" _Any excuse to get away from this. I just hope that it isn't Arnold._

She picked up the phone and said, "Hello, you've reached the Patakis' house, Helga speaking." She had to talk like that ever since Olga had pointed out she wasn't that polite to people on the phone.

"Uh, hey Helga."

_Ugh, I hate irony._

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Uh, hey Helga." 

On the other end of the line he heard Helga whisper something about irony, then say, "Um, uh, hi _Pheobe._ I was just talking to my _Dad_." Arnold was confused why she said he was Pheobe.

"Um, this is Arnold."

"I KNOW, _Pheobe_. Ah, uh, its just that…Okay, hi Arnold."

Arnold raised an eyebrow, knowing Helga couldn't see it. "Why'd you call me Pheobe?"

"Uh, because my dad won't let me talk to you because of the whole FTi thing. And because I talked to you--about that homework assignment, the math one, do you remember what it was? Sorry, Dad again. Anyway, why'd you call me?"

Arnold grabbed the back of his neck. "Um, I was thinking, that maybe we oughta do that talking thing again, and you know, maybe we could go to the park and do it. Nobody would be there because grown-ups are at work and the gang is all probably at Gerald Field. Sooooo…"

Helga answered rather quickly. "Yes, sure, be there in 15 minutes, and, uh, thanks for helping me out Pheobe, I'll be there soon."

Arnold smiled at the attempt Helga was making, but didn't know why her father was acting like that. "Yeah, sure. Um, I'll see you there."

"Bye."

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_Click._

Helga stood there for just a moment. She had mentally told herself to not tell Arnold too much yesterday, but she cracked. Could she survive to day? She didn't know, but she'd try. 

Or, possibly, she _should _tell him everything. Up from the little pink book, to the play, to the dreams. Well, maybe not the dreams. Those were to be kept to herself. But still, he knew most of it; why not tell him that he did like her like her, only just not knowing she was really Helga? The Cecile coincidence might bring something up, maybe even cause him to like like her! _Criminy, not another moral dilemma. Should I tell Arnold everything and probably traumatize the boy again, or should I just tell him everything and wait to see what happens. Oh, why'd my session with Bliss have to be tomorrow?_

She grabbed her coat, making the decision to wait and see. Big Bob asked where she was going, and she just told him that she was going to Pheobe's house for homework help. It worked, and she was on her way, with ten minutes to get to the park.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

 Arnold grabbed his coat and walked down to the kitchen to talk tell Grandpa where he was going. The park was only three minutes away from where he lived, so he decided to talk to Grandpa about his, uh, would you call it a problem?

_ Well, its not like he'd hold this up on me, as an embarressment or a grudge, he practically being Helga's dad's mortal enemy. But, hey, right now he'll be all I have. And I really can't stand this alone._ He sat down on the table and sighed. "Hey, Grandpa."

Phil looked up. "Uh, oh, Arnold. I sense another one of your boyhood problems. 'Fess up." He had that concerned guardian look, but Arnold had a feeling that it wouldn't change.

He bit his lip and said, "Grandpa, you remember when you told me that Gertie story when you thought that Helga li-"

"Is she the Pataki kid with the one big eyebrow?"

"Uh, yeah. Well, I think you were right about her having a, well…"

Grandpa smirked all knowingly. "A what, short man?"

Arnold looked up guiltily. "A crush on me."

His grandfather's head fell back as he started laughing like a hyena on sugared antelope. Arnold expected this, but he really had to tell somebody, and knew what anybody else would do if he told them.

When he finally caught his breath, he managed to say, "Arnold, there's some advice I'd like to tell you about this situation that my father gave to me when I was a young boy such as yourse-"

Arnold sighed. "If its about rasberries, that really doesn't help me."

"No, no, this one's different. He told me, 'Girls can be confusing at some points, but half of the population is filled with them, so you have to take whatever you have to understand them'. Now, I'd like to tell you who Gertie was, I mean, is."

Arnold looked at his watch. He had time. "Okay, Grandpa," he said, smiling. "Who's Gertie?"

He pointed to the kitchen doorway and said, "Just look." You know who walked through the door.

Arnold's eyes grew wide. "Grandma is Gertie?!?!"

She looked up with her Safari hat on and said, "Yes, yes, but right now I'm Gwana going after the man-eater, Kimba. Sh."

"I figured out that she'd had a big crush on me the whole time!" said Phil.

Arnold furrowed one brow, thinking. _If my son meets his wife when he's in San Lorenzo, I'll die. Hey, wait. Oh, man. Grandpa married his fourth grade bully! Uuuuhhhh…_ "Uh, Grandpa? When did you find out that Grandma like liked you?"

Grandpa placed his hand on his chin and thought. "I'll tell you later, short man. Hey, your coats on, were you going somewhere?"

Then Arnold suddenly remembered. "Oh, yeah. I'm going to the park Grandpa. Bye!" With that he left the boarding house.

This time, Arnold caught the bus to meet with Helga at the park. He'd be about a minute late, but not too much.

The bus dropped him off at the front entrance, where he saw Helga running up to the front gate also. When she saw him, she stopped in her tracks. "Uh," he said, "hi."

She forced on a smile and said, "Hi." There was a small pause. "Uh, so, are we gonna go inside or not?"

Arnold turned back to the gates. "Yes. Come on. Lets go."

They walked a little bit, quietly, but they didn't want to talk yet. There was a feeling of uncomfort in the air around them, but the more they walked, the more it seemed to dim some.

When they passed by the first bench, Arnold stopped, looked at it, and smiled. Helga saw this and asked, "What's so smile worthy about a bench?"

Arnold chuckled just a bit. "Don't you remember? The last time I was by this bench is when we called a weekend-long truse(sp.?)"

Helga tilted her head as she stepped over by him. Now she remembered. It was when they found their egg, the one that posed as a child, while it was hatching into a chick. It was also when she showed him that for once she tried to be nice, yet he was the one who jumped at her. Well, and eye for and eye, even if one is bigger. "Yeah, I do." She sat down on it. She made her decision. "Arnold, speaking of this, there's even more stuff I feel like you ought to know."

Arnold raised and eyebrow. "More? What do you mean, more?"

She grasped her hands together and fiddled with her thumbs. "Yes, but first I have to ask you something."

He sensed something and sat down next to her. "What is it?"

Helga bit her lip. "What do you think this will change. You know, my reputation, everyone eventually realizing that I'm not mean to you anymore. Hey, wait, don't get excited, I might, because I can't control when I'm annoyed, but still…I'm just curious on your point of few on it."

Arnold had been thinking of this too. "I don't know. Gerald knows you were Deep Voice, but-"

"He does!"

"Yeah, I forgot about that, but I guess we'll have to see. Now, what'd you want to say?"

Helga grabbed her pigtails and pulled really hard, trying not to burst from embaressment. "This is really hard to say, but I feel like I have to." She took a deep breath. "Uh, um, you know that little pink book with all of the poems in it?"

Arnold's eyes widened. "No. I mean, it can't be."

She nodded. "Also, I took your hat, lost it, looked for it in the dump, found it, and decided to give it back so you'd come out. Why is it so special to you?"

Arnold looked down. "My parents gave it to me when I was little. That's why it's so small."

That made Helga feel bad about taking it. Oh, yeah. "Uh, sorry. Also, I'm the one who owned the parrot and the locket. I'm the one who wrote Helga Loves Lila on the wall and caused the whole you and Lila thing. I convinced all four Juliets, telling Lila my secret on the way, to get the spot, I was spoiling your dates to the Cheese Fair with Ruth and Lila, also the ones with Summer-"

"Whoa, wait a second," interrupted Arnold. "You did what? And you owned the parrot _and _the locket _and_ you are the cause for me liking Lila, even though you like me?" He put his head in hands. "Why is my love-life so difficult?"

Helga fiddled with her fingers some more. She really hoped that this time it wouldn't be straight. "There's something else that's even weirder than the rest. Can you believe it?"

He looked up. "No, and what?"

Helga unwrapped her big pink bow and let her hair fall over her shoulders and her eyes. She was glad, in a certain way, that it wasn't straight like it was on occasion. "Who am I?"

A quizzical look came over the boy's face as he tried to remember the familiar face. "You look just like this girl I met from France. But only me and Gerald know what she looked like."

Helga sighed. He was still so completely out of it. "The Cecile you know wasn't the Cecile you thought she was, remember, bone-head? Valentine's Day. Chez Paris. Pen-pal. Not really. Red high-heel shoe. All of that equals ME!" 

Arnold could not believe this. He was quiet for a long time, his mind completely void except for one thing: Helga and everything she'd just said._ If she was Cecile, then what does that mean for me? I had just decided I  wouldn't like Ruth anymore the same hour I started to like her. Wait_. The non-dense wheels in his head stated to turn. _If I said I liked Cecile, while Cecile was really Helga, than that means I just admitted that I like-like Helga!_ "Oh, man," he groaned.

This whole time Helga was having her own thoughts. _This is it. Either he realizes he likes me or realizes that h doesn't and that he never liked Cecile or something else. Oh well. God in heaven knew this would happen eventually, at least that's what they say in church. Maybe we'll get to be _really _good friends, if I know what I mean. Or, the alternative._

Arnold grabbed the back of his neck and said, "This has been a weird day, huh?"

Helga cleared her throat. "Uh, yeah, it has." She looked up. It took every ounce of remaining dignity in her body to say this: "So, uh, what do you think about it? Besides it being weird."

Arnold looked out at the bright sunlight, the fresh grass, and the small patches of flowers that summer brought in Hillwood. He stood up. What did he think about it? The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to really get to know the real Helga. Of course, he had gotten a few chances, the biggest ones being now and, well, Valentine's Day. But, did he like her? He had to think about it.

"Uh, Helga. Its getting close to lunchtime, isn't it?"

She looked at her watch, stood, and nodded. "It's twelve fourteen. So I guess that means that you are hungry, huh?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I am. Do you think that we could finish this some other time?"

"I don't really know if we have anything else to talk about. I mean, you know that-"

"Wait."

"What?"

"I thought I saw a hand over there, and some of the bushes moving."

Helga's head immediately turned toward the bushes that Arnold was looking at. If somebody found out her secret, besides Bliss, Lila, Pheebs, and Arnold, she'd punch that person before they could utter a word. She raised her fist and said, "Get out here, right now, or I'll knock your teeth out so hard, it'll wake up your den-"

Arnold put his hands up. "Helga, they're long gone. It's too late, so just stop."

Helga slowly put her hand down, knowing what would happen if this person knew them. The gossip would soon spread, slowly, then more quickly. The one thing she'd feared all her life would happen: ridicule. Rumors. She'd be called soft, a lover girl. Arnold would be tangled in it too. It would be her worst nightmare. She sat back down hard on the bench, still looking at the bushes. Then, she screamed. We all know what that scream is like. Arnold remembered it.

"Now I know what all those things I heard but Gerald didn't were."

Helga looked up with an angry expression on her face. "That really doesn't HELP, Arnold. What am I going to do now!" 

Arnold looked down to the dirt path he was on. This was one of those things nine going on ten year old kids shouldn't have to worry about. "Helga, are you okay?"

Hekga looked back up. "Yeah, I'm chewing big bubble gum balls and skipping through Happy Land singing 'Happiness' from that Charlie Brown musical. No, actually, I really am not."

Arnold looked back at her. "There is more I need to talk to you about."

This time Helga's head stayed up. "What do you mean?"

He shrugged. "Just some stuff that I think I should ask, since we're this far. But, it can't be now. My grandpa is probably worried."

Helga stood next to Arnold and looked at the sunlight, the trees, and the flowers. If only life were as easy as looking at God's wonders. "Yeah, and my dad will definitely think I'm as dumb as rocks if I stay here any longer."

Arnold looked at her with his head tilted. She said, "Long story."

"I can tell."

"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

Arnold waved his hand. "I'll see you at practice. Bye." He left, and Helga turned soon after to go down the other way.

When they went home, they each ran up to their rooms, jumped on their beds, and screamed into their pillows.

Whoa. This story, the and and the fic, is 3, 195 words long and 3 pages long, which is pretty close to a record for me. *I'm not even you and my fingers hurt. Glad I'm not you.* So, you be the judge. I wanna know if you think they're OOC or IC, okay? *I'm trying to get her to write a Bliss fic!* I'm thinking about it, sheesh! Anyways, I'm about to update, so review!

~~Briana *+ Phebga*~~

   


	7. Baseball and Shrinking

Explanations

AN: Sorry for the little lie, but I didn't know it would take so long to finish this, especially since I've been thinking of new ideas for a new story "Time to Switch!" ~does wink, point, and 'cha-chink. Yeah.' noise~ 

Summary: *I convinced her. It's a Bliss-full moment, ya'll. Then, it's off to Gerald field, with a Gerald in tow. * She's doing her I'm happy there's a Gerald in here dance. *Also, we find out who was in the bush! *

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or labels in this story, just the basic plot. Okay, now who's responsible for that? I mean, I could run a cartoon like that if I were given the chance. I mean come on, I wouldn't care if I were just a storyboard artist, which would be neat, but hey, I can take someone's vocal. Really, I mean…*Don't worry, kids. She's in custody. *

Blab: Helga, whenever I type that word, it comes up on the spell checker as Hula. Question marks.

The day was Thursday. On any other kid's calendar, a Thursday in the summer equaled party and baseball. But on others', such as Helga's, it meant a visit to the Hillwood Medical Clinic for a visit with Dr. Bliss. During the first hour, when the doctor tickled Helga's secret (which was now known to the subject of the secret) out, the two enjoyed these hours together. Besides Phoebe, she was the only one Helga could usually confide in. Well, enough of that. Helga had long since left the trench coat at home, for the facts were that it was too hot, none of her friends (except Pheobe) went through that area, and she wasn't as bothered as earlier. Keyword: _as_ bothered as _earlier_. This time she just wanted to tell somebody about all of this. Who better than somebody who was on an oath to never tell, even under threat of tied in a cave with a rabid starved rat. To Helga, that meant something. 

She walked into Dr. Bliss's office and said, "Hi, Karla."

Dr. Bliss looked up, since Karla was her first name, and smiled. "Helga, hello. Would you like to sit down?"

Helga nodded and sat on the couch. She smiled, got a lovesick look in her eyes, and fell blissfully on her back. "Dr. Bliss?" she began. "You remember on Tuesday, how I told you how I told Arnold then he asked if I denied it and I did?"

Dr. Bliss had a small flame of anticipation brew in herself. "Yes, Helga, I do. I'm proud of you for getting the guts to confess, but then you denied it, so…"

Helga sat up again with the biggest smile she'd ever had. The flame grew. "Well, the second time I didn't." She fell once more on to the couch. 

Dr. Bliss smiled and walked over to Helga, kneeled down, picked her up, and hugged her. Helga got tense, but she was in one of her daydream moods. "I'm so happy for you." She pulled back and looked at Helga's eyes, which were looking at the top windowpane. "Helga? Helga."

Helga raised an arm and slapped herself, an action that Karla (which I'll now call her) hadn't seen before. She jumped back and gasped, "Helga! Are you all right? Why'd you do that?"

Helga looked up. "Uh, oh, sorry.  Anyway, the first day he just walked into my house and asked if I was lying the first time, which I was, and then, well I could tell he knew, so I told him, and then he saw my latest shrine, he fainted, um, twice, and then I told him why I kept it, then he was quiet for 5 minutes, said it wasn't _too _weird, then said I'd meet him the next day, which was tomorrow, and I really have to take a drink of water right now, can I?"

Karla was still jotting down notes for her file so she could look back on it. "Why of course, Helga. Go on."

When she left, Karla stood and almost screamed inside the soundproof doors, "YES! She did it!" She pulled her elbow up and down in that 'I'm so happy, yea for victory' motion.

She heard the doorknob turn and sat back down. "Are you okay now?"

"Yep, and I'm fueled to go." Helga sat back down. "Where were we?"

"You were talking about what you did yesterday. But, could you go over the first day again?"

So Helga told her everything that happened while she wrote small notes about it and what improvement it should show in her self-confidence around him and others and such. When Helga listed out the long line of things that she had done to or that had to do with Arnold.

"Wait," she interrupted. "You posed as a French pen pal, which he started to like, then gave him one of your shoes, and told him about it. What was his response?"

Helga shrugged. "You know, silence, change of subject, the usual that you'd expect from someone who wants to think about it later." She sighed and fell on her back. "You know what? I really think that something's going on here. You know, he liked Cecile, which was basically me, which means he likes me. 'Couse, he's so dense he probably doesn't know it yet, but, well, oh!"

Karla looked at her patient proudly. It had been often that she had talked about Arnold, but this was something new. Now there was hope that this girl could find true happiness, and not just dream of it. As she wrote things down on her pad of paper for Helga's file, Karla wished that Arnold really were thinking about his feelings right now. But, she'd never know.

Karla Bliss smiled at the wonderful child. "It's a start Helga," she said. "It could be possible." _I sure hope so, for her sake._ _She really needs him._ She looked at the clock. It was four minutes after one o' clock.  "Oh, Helga, our session had been over for a while. I'm about to be late for a meeting. We can talk on Tuesday, alright?"

Helga stood up with a slight pout. "Aw, but it hasn't seemed like an hour."

Karla smiled again. "Sorry, Helga, but I have to go. Bye."

Helga gave her a quick hug, something that she did only when she was very happy, and usually only to Dr. Bliss. When she was outside of the Hillwodd Medical Clinic, she remembered what she was supposed to do that day, and ran toward Vine Street, to get to Gerald Field for baseball practice.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Hey," yelled Sid. "Aren't we missing somebody?"

Everyone was at Gerald field, trying out their bats, pounding in their mitts, and playing catch before practice. Gerlad did a quick head count. "Yep, we're missing somebody, and I know who." Gerald smiled to himself, a sly one that you usually didn't see on him. Arnold saw it and lifted an eyebrow.

"Anybody seen Helga?" Gerald asked.

"I'm here, Geraldo!" She turned the corner and ran to the center of the field, on top of the pitchers mound. She seemed to look cool and collected, the same old Helga, to most of the gang. She started barking orders. "Sid, you get to right field, Pheobe, second base, and Harold-"

As everyone else was walking to wherever, Gerald walked over to Arnold. "Hey, man," he said. "I just talked to Fuzzy Slippers, and he thinks that what just happened the other day would make a great urban legend. I haven't had much of those lately, huh?"

Arnold nodded to his friend. To Gerald, his mind seemed somewhere totally different. "Hey, Arnold? What are you doing?" Gerald thought a moment. "Are you wondering about your grandma? She really needs to stop with the whole escape thing."

This time Arnold shook his head no. Gerald smiled. "Could it possibly be what Helga told you the other day?"

Arnold's head jolted to Gerald with a small look of fear and curiosity. He almost screamed something, but then caught himself, leaned in on Gerald and whispered, "How do you know I was talking to Helga the other day?"

Gerald put his hand on his best friend's shoulder. "I'm so sorry that Helga, ha ha ha, sorry man. Helga loves Arnold, oh, that's just to sweet." He shook his head. "Now I know why she was helping us, or, more so, you."

Arnold lifted Gerald's arm off of his shoulder. "How do you know this?!"

Gerald crossed his arms. "Remember when you saw someone in that bush?"

"That was you?"

"Yeah."

"Why did you follow me?"

"I thought something was up since she was DV, and you were talking to her."

"Please, don't tell anybody. I don't want Helga to turn into another Iggy!"

"Wouldn't you want her to ignore you? Aw, man, I can't believe she like-likes you! I would want her to be an Iggy to me!"

"Well, I don't! I want her to talk to me!"

Gerald froze in his place. He didn't blink, and he looked like he wasn't breathing. _This is not possible,_ he thought. _Did Arnold just say he wanted to talk to Helga?_

Arnold looked at Gerald's weird expression of shock change to amusement. "It has happened again, buddy," said Gerald.

"What's happened again?"

"Cupid must have something about you, because now look at who you're crushing on!" Gerald started to roll on the ground, attracting everyone's attention. Mostly Arnold and Helga's. Arnold, though, was so far the only one affected by what he said. 

_No, I can't like Helga! It's bad enough that he knows what she said to me, but, no, I can't! Can I?_

Helga walked up to the hysterical boy on the ground. "You're supposed to be first baseman, not insane Tall-Hair Boy!"

Arnold cleared his thought. "Uh, Helga?" She looked over at him, keeping her annoyed look. "Bush."

At first Helga was clued out on what 'bush' meant, but then she remembered what was seen at the end of their 'meeting' yesterday. She mouthed a "No," but Arnold nodded and pointed at the calming Gerald.

Helga growled to herself and grabbed Arnold's wrist. Gerald occupied everyone, so no one noticed. 

She pulled him into an alley and said, "Okay, what does he know?"

Arnold grabbed his shoulder and looked down. _What was Gerald talking about? I don't love Helga. Wait, didn't I just have this argument yesterday? Yeah, well, this is different, sort of. Oh, great, now I'm talking to myself. Ugh, now what am I supposed to do? _He looked up at Helga. "He knows that I-I mean, you love me. He started laughing before he told me anymore." _See, you almost said 'I'. Who are you? I'm your other person, or conscience, if you prefer. Okay, what should I do, conscience? I don't know. You're the brains; I'm just the moral. I'm just supposed to tell you how you're feeling and lead you through what you should do. Ugh._

"You don't think that he'll tell anyone, do you?"

"Gerald? No, he won't. He's my best friend."

Helga still felt uncomfortable about it. She knew that she shouldn't have told him her feelings. _Come on, Helga, you know that that's wrong. Remember what you were thinking this morning? Who are you? Ah, you're some kind of conscience, aren't you? Darn. Yeah, I am. So what are you going to do to help me? Just to lead you through what you should do. Ugh, fine._ "So, you're sure? But what if he does?"

Arnold smiled. "He won't. Trust me." By golly, Helga could sure do that.

They turned out of the alley to hear absolutely nothing. Helga got a little scared. _Gerald was laughing earlier, wasn't he?_

They turned right, into the very short fence that reached about two feet into the field, where they saw Gerald standing in the middle of the group of kids. When they heard them walking up, everyone turned, pointed, and laughed. Harold started up a chant. "Arnold and Helga, sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S in the tree!" 

Sorry to leave ya'll hanging, but I have a science project that I need to get ready for. *The people are starting to form a large mob outside of a young child's house. Apparently, the child has done something, I think its called a 'cliffhanger'* Next one, well, you can kind of guess what the next one will be like. Wishing ya'll good surfing, water or microchips!

Alert: *Do you know who I really am? At the end of Explanations, Through the CD, and Time to Switch, I'll be announcing my true identity! And, no, I'm not just stuff Briana writes. So wait up! *

~~Briana LFBH~~ *^^Phebga^^*   


	8. Secrets for the Better?

Explanations

Hey, all you people who reviewed me! Sorry it took so long, but it's almost over! Like, three or four chappies left! * It's been fun! *Anyway, here's the next chappie of the story about the finding of romance, humor, drama, and suspense! *Wow. Really, um, critic-like. *

*Okay, here's the deal. Gerald did something that will change the course of this story forever. What will Arnold and Helga's reactions be? Hey, I'm not telling. Go on and read! I'm just going to say that it is pretty good! Oh, this will be so cool…It took it's own course! *

Don't own it, nya nya nya!

Quote: "Hey, do you guys see smoke? I can't feel my face! Why does everything look bluuue?" Sheen JN: Boy Genius (It kills the moment, but…)

"Arnold and Helga, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S, in the tree!" yelled Harold. Arnold glared at him, and then his gaze switched to Gerald. How could he do this? They were best friends!

Helga's eyes were enlarged, and her face was motionless. She wasn't blinking. The most shocking and surprising, while still terrifying, moment in her life hadn't even begun. Gerald, Tall Hair Boy as he would now be called, just spilled the beans. The red, hot, juicy, spicy, muy grande important, cowboy beans. The beans that told everyone the Helga loved Arnold. Finally, Helga moved. She bent over double, grabbed her stomach, and said, "Oh, I hate you Gerald." Then she moved again. Straight to the ground.

After the awkward silence that fell when Helga fainted, everyone pointed at Arnold and laughed. Some made comments like, "Poor Arnold," or  "Can you believe Helga?" Arnold just looked helpless, except when he looked at Gerald and Helga. Gerald, apparently, had just realized what he'd done. Arnold glanced at the young girl, decided to pick her up, (since she'd jumped in his arms a few times, he knew he had the strength) and carried her away without any more words said. At this action, most of the kids made noises that proved that they thought Arnold felt the same way, or that they thought it was all mushy gushy.

As Arnold carried Helga, he was in a slight rage. Hey, he's still a kid, even if most think of him as a saint. (Ahem. Arms, pink, bow, blonde, yeah.) He thought, Gerald promised me he wouldn't tell! He promised, and then he broke it. He knew what would happen to her and me! Look at how it affected her. Now things for sure won'tever be the same! It's his entire fault. _Look at yourself!_ Oh, it's my conscience. What is it? _You're ranting about how things are going to be different, but you knew it all along! You act like you're mad at Gerald, and you have good reason, okay, but you knew it would get out, anyway. _But it would have gone on it's own time, and maybe then I'd…_Huh? Wait, did you just say? Oh, duh, I'm your conscience, I should know. Oh, yeah! You were about to say, "Maybe then I'd like- like her." _And what does that mean** Connor**, if you want that to be your name? _I like that name! Oh, anyway, what do you think it means? You REALLY LIKE HER! _ "No, I don't! Do I? Why do I keep arguing with myself?" "Don't what, and argue about what?" Arnold almost dropped what he was carrying at the sound of another voice, but was relieved when it turned out to be Helga. "So, I, uh, um, I guess you're okay now?" 

Helga was looking at Arnold strangely, which made him uncomfortable. I knew that I didn't feel the ground when I fainted, if that's possible! _He was carrying you voluntarily down the sidewalk away from the taunting, Helga. Now what do you think about telling him or not?_ Not you again. Don't you ever go away? _No, not really. But think about it. He is carrying you AWAY from what you fear most: teasing and ridicule. _And that means? _You are as bad as he can be, you know that? Carry from danger, asking if he does or doesn't something. What does that equal, girl?_ I don't know…Hey, I'm not as dense as he is! A small pause went through her mind. Then she said, "You don't mean what I think you mean, do you?"

"What do I mean? I haven't said anything."

Helga looked up. Arnold had stopped walking. "Um, Helga," he said, "can you, uh, get down? I'm starting to cramp."

Helga looked at her sides, where Arnold's fingers ended. She blushed a deep crimson. _See._ "Oh, oh, um, yeah, sure. I'm sorry." She tried to successfully, but instead she fell off and landed on her face. Something much like the first day in the closet happened as she landed on Arnold's foot, he yelped, fell, and landed smack next to Helga's face.

_Uh, oh._

_Uh, oh. But at the same time…_

_It might do some good._

Their eyes had been closed after the fall, and Arnold's were the first to open. _Uh, oh. _

"Uh, Helga?" he said. "Sorry."

Helga moaned, her eyes still closed. "Why?"

Arnold cleared his throat, nervously. "Because my face is two inches away from yours, and you're on my foot, so can you move?"

Before Arnold had even finished the sentence, Helga was well at work trying to get up. "I can't," she said. "My shoe is caught in something."

"I think it's the bottom of my pants, or my sweater!"

"Help me get it out, Arnoldo!" she laughed. It was just to funny of a scene! Embarrassing, yes, but it was still so funny. "I don't exactly like you tangled up with me!" _Are you sure? _Shut the crap up, conscience! This isn't exactly a comfortable position! _Oh, that's it! I'm sorry, but I have to do something! So what if it's against regulations, I'm doing it!_

"What? What!"

"What are you screaming about, Helga?" _Okay, Arnold, listen up! You have to make a decision! _What decision, Connor? _Aw, man, don't you think that it might be the thing that we've been talking about for the last day or so? _Oh, yeah.

Helga stood up and brushed herself off. She looked up, and for some reason smiled at Arnold. Not a mean smile, not even one that was lovesick, but a pure, good-hearted smile. Okay, she thought, what is going on? _I'm inside your brain, doofus, so don't you think I can do stuff with it? _You mean your taking over my body? _Basically. _But, wait, no, don't…

"Oh, um, nothing, I wasn't screaming about anything. It's just, you know, talking to myself."

Arnold lifted his very thin eyebrow. Okay, I might be dense, I think, but I can still tell that something is wrong with her! She doesn't act like this, does she? _You know, I think that…Oh, it must be! _What? _I can't tell you. _"Um, Helga?" asked Arnold. "Are you okay?"

Helga's eyes got a little wider. _Okay, get a grip. Be Helga. _"Oh, I, um, yeah, of course, why wouldn't I be?"

Both kids looked down at their shoes like they were the most amazing things in the world at the exact same moment. Helga's conscience was trying to get a grip on being her body. "So, um," stuttered Helga's conscience, "what are we going to do now that everyone knows?"

Arnold looked up suddenly at the still shoe-gazing Helga. At least, he thought it was Helga, but his conscience knew much better. Arnold didn't know what to say. "I-I don't know," he finally stuttered. "I mean, well, it was bound to happen some time. I just can't believe Gerald told everyone!"

Helga's conscience bit her lip. Connie, thought Helga, what are you going to do? _Connie? I like that name. It's mine! _Gr, Connie? _Sorry. Um, I guess I'll just play along. Shall we?_ "Yeah, it is kinda hard to believe." _So what if you act mean sometimes, you've been known to sometimes be normal! _She grabbed the back of her neck and sighed. "What are we going to do?" 

That is it, Connie, you are going out! _But I haven't done anything yet! _Later.

"I was afraid of this!" cried Helga, the real one. What am I saying? _Now it's you that's pouring stuff out! Again. _

"I knew that if my secret ever got out, I would be humiliated. Now your best friend blabbed it to the entire class, and by the time school starts, everyone will know!"

Helga sat down on a nearby bench and put her head in her hands. Arnold watched this. He knew how hard it was for Helga to talk, and to tell her even something as small as this was something. Of course, what was he to say? In the max of two hours at her house, he learned that there was a bear statue in her attic, but still…_So, what do you say?_

Arnold walked over to the bench and sat next to Helga. He put her arm around her shoulder, hesitated when she flinched, then put it all the way around. I say that…

"It'll be all right, Helga."

She looked up into her love's eyes. "You think so?"

He smiled at her. "I know so." The girl who had spilled her secrets, even though it was so difficult. The girl that he couldn't help but want to know. The girl that he knew was amazing to keep up her life. 

The girl he finally…understood, in a way.

…I think I do.

"Hey, Helga! Arnold?"

I know, I'm like, the most evil person, aren't I? *But we have to keep you going! * Anyway, this story seriously took it's own path. It took me forever to come up with an idea for this thing, but it just came! * You sound all mushy, do you know that? * Anyway, reviews keep me up! So, till the next time I update, this is:

~~Briana LFBH~~ *=^^Phebga MFM!^^* (MFM-Madame Fortress Mommy)

Read: Time To Switch-A story where to opposites switch…only it's Helga and a different girl.

Through the Compact Disc-Helga and Frannie do some serious thinking about what they should do next. I could have left the biggest cliffie, but decided to make a smaller one. Hey, they all have them!

V-Day II: My Hair Is Down-My Valentines Days fic, no matter how late!

  
                                                                                   

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	9. Apologetic

Explanations

Well, here it is; the ninth part of Explanations has undergone! In the last chappie, I left you off with something really cliffhanger ish! Well, that's how evil I can be! Anyway, here it is, ya'll! Thank you Serap and King Cheetah for your nice reviews, and Sassy Angel too, plus everyone else that reviewed! I hit writers block at the smack first third of this story, so sorry if there was any delay. Well, introducing PMFM, with the summary!

* A little bit of this. A little bit of that. It started-Oh, sorry. Anyway, lemme read the paper…Okay, here it is:  Phoebe is introduced and does something with Helga and one other person; Gerald calls Arnold and apologizes for…two things? Huh? Anyway, Connor, Arnold's conscience, helps Arnold out. *

Does it look like a twelve-year-old and an eleven-year-old can be important enough to be the great Craig Bartlett. ~Appear before a Craig shrine, like Helga's only w/o the football~ I shall never be the greatness of him!

Important Saying: "Come on! We've got a cosmic energy field to fix!" Arnold-Downtown as Fruits

"Hey, Helga!" said Phoebe as she ran as fast as her petite legs could carry her. That is, until she stopped. "Arnold?" she stopped because Arnold was sitting on the bench with his arm around Helga, his eyes wide, but for whatever reason it was, Phoebe didn't know. That is, until they both realized the presence of Phoebe, in which afterwards they scooted to opposite ends of the bench.

Helga looked up at Phoebe with a slight glare on her face. What does she want? _Helga, she's your best friend. She knows that Arnold and everyone else know your secret, too. What did you think she'd do? _I don't know! "What do you want Pheebs?"

Phoebe shook off what she had seen just then and answered, "I would just like to have a private conversation with you. It will be really quick!"

Helga stole a glance at Arnold, and the one he gave back told her to go on. There wasn't anything else he could say. "Sure, Phoebe."

Helga stood up, thinking about what exactly she would say to her best friend. It was obvious that she wanted her to tell her about the whole Arnold deal, but how would she put it? _Just breathe, Helga. Act like it is Dr. Bliss or something, okay? _Who asked you? _You ask, I answer, I answer, and you ask.  It's a win/win thing here. _ Whatever.

When the two of them were behind a corner in an alleyway, Phoebe started to jump up and down with excitement. "Oh, Helga, this is just so wonderful! You finally told him! I can't believe it! It's just so amazing, Helga, oh, I just, I just…" Phoebe then shrieked happily.

Helga just leaned back on the wall and sighed. Yeah, so I told him, she thought. Big deal, it's not like he loves me back or anything. (* Little does she know, huh? * ) _Come off it, Helga, you were just as happy this morning, weren't you? _Yeah, but now the tables have turned.

"Look, Phoebe," she said, "it's great and all, but look at where it got me. The whole class making fun of me, and my reputation is ruined! So, I told, yes I did. But now things are just worse!"

Phoebe looked at her best friend. The first time she met her, she only wanted someone to help keep her tormenters at bay. Now, the way Helga put it, she would be the one with the bullies, at least for a little while. Once Phoebe was aware of this, she frantically changed the subject so that Helga wouldn't be too depressed. "Helga, could you please just tell me what happened! Please?"

_Come on, Helga, what's the wrong in it? You told Bliss about it. _Yeah, sure. For once in a short while, I believe you. "Okay, Phoebe. Well, it all started in the last day the neighborhood had before that Scheck guy tore the place down. Since my dad was in on some of it with some guy, Nick Macaroni or some kind of pasta, so all I had to do was be in the room to know almost everything that could save it. Well, since Arnold and Gerald were having their own little show, I decided to help them, but with a secret identity of sorts, or something. Now, this is where the stuff starts getting weirder…"

So Helga told Phoebe as many details as possible, since she looked earnest to know them all. Now, another person knows the story. The only people Helga trusted were those that knew, and hopefully Phoebe would pull through keeping it, too.

Even if the secret was out, not everyone had to know the behind the scenes deal.

Phoebe's expression became slightly lower when Helga reached the part about what had just recently happened. Phoebe knew how emotional and secretive her friend was, and was one the three who did. Helga knew this, so she tried to cover up even more right now, but her abilities were fading since the reason she did grew pointless about fifty minutes ago. So all the things Phoebe knew she was capable of were showing. But, of course, that's beside the point, isn't it?

Phoebe hugged her friend, whom of which flinched again but then grew still and accepted the comfort. She needed some.

Phoebe looked into her eyes. "Helga, I just want to tell you that I'm overwhelmed by your abilities to be such a good friend and tell your secrets. I just wanted to let you know that, all right"

Helga patted Phoebe on the back. "'Course it is, Pheebs." She stepped back. "I have to get back, okay?"

Phoebe nodded. "I think I'll have a talk with Gerald, okay?"

At first Helga lifted her eyebrow, then seemed grateful; at least, she seemed as grateful as she showed. "Thanks. He promised Arnold he wouldn't tell, and then…Oh, I want to pound him so bad!" She rammed her fist into her hand, and then she walked back a little further. "I'm going to go back now, all right?"

Her best friend nodded and waved her off, seeming to encourage her to go. _Did she help your doubts? _Yeah, she did. Kind of. _Yes, she did, and totally. I like to see you be nicer to her when she's supporting you. _Okay…hey, where is?

The bench was empty. A single, crumpled piece of paper was lying in Helga's previous spot, with a note written in Arnold's handwriting. She picked it up, read it, and then looked back up.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Ten minutes later…

Arnold's hands were tucked in his pockets and his chin shrugged his shoulders up. He had just made an impossible decision.

_Come on, Arnold, it wasn't impossible. From what I've seen before making my personal appearance to you, you've had at least tiny feelings for her before now. _You know, I'd listen better if you'd give me control of my body!

Indeed, Arnold's conscience (now known as Connor) had assumed control of the body, as Helga's conscience (now known as Connie) had. Arnold was annoyed by this, and showed it on his sleeves.

I can't believe I'm in love with Helga! I'm barely ten! _So what? She loved you when she was three. _Good point, but still, I, I, just can't believe it! Helga and me? I don't get it! _Well, it's my job to show you, and show you I shall. _How? _By things she's now told you, things you know, and things you don't. _

Connor walked up to the door of the Sunset Arms boarding house, and then ran up to Arnold's bedroom. But as soon as he shut the door, he heard the phone ring. After two rings, Arnold thought Go answer it! Grandma is in the kitchen cooking and Grandpa's at the store. _Oh, right. _

He walked down to the hallway and picked up the phone. "Hello," said Connor, "you've reached the Sunset Arms."

"Arnold, man, since when do you answer the phone like that?"

It's Gerald! Let me talk to him! _Fine._

"Hello, Gerald," said Arnold in a slightly cold and tense.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Five minutes earlier…

Phoebe was standing in Gerald's hallway, waiting for Gerald to answer the door. She was, indeed, keeping her promise to talk to Gerald. Right now, Phoebe was pretty mad at him, even though they had a slight 'thing' for each other. Well, best friends come first.

Gerald opened the door and looked at Phoebe in surprise, then chuckled.

"What's so comedic, Gerald?" Phoebe crossed her arms and tapped her foot slowly.

Gerald hushed up and said, "Sorry, Phoebe. It's just that you remind me of…me of…Helga. You know, since you're her be-"

"You should apologize to YOUR best friend, Gerald!" She walked up to him angrily and poked him with her index finger. "You told the entire class a secret that you promised to keep, Gerald! And because of your impudence, your friend and my friend are in total humiliation!"

Gerald held his hands up and said, "I know what I did. It was just that something was such a shock, I wasn't thinking right and thought I should share the laugh. Not everyone has total control, Phoebe. Everything's been going by really fast lately, you know?"

Phoebe walked back a little bit and said, "What was such a surprise, Gerald?"

Gerald covered his mouth with his hand, then fell to the ground and grabbed his stomach since he was laughing so hard. Phoebe's eyes grew open as she looked at Gerald do this again.

"Oh, oh, hah, woo! Oh, I'm sorry, babe, but it's just so funny!"

Phoebe raised her eyebrow. "Gerald, why do you call everyone 'babe'?" When he shrugged, she asked, "What was such a shock that it made you laugh so hysterically?"

Gerald shook his head and chuckled again. "Arnold has fallen for seven girls now in the last year, do you know that?"

Phoebe tipped her head in awe. "No, I didn't." She leveled it again. "What does this have to do with everything?"

"Well," he answered, "There's been Ruth, Maria, Cecile, Summer, Lila, and this girl named Hilda, and the seventh one just might be Helga! He said something that really hinted at it. I don't imagine either of them being together, do you?"

Phoebe decided not to comment on that, but rather said, "Go in there, Gerald Martin Johansson, and apologize to your Arnold, do you understand me?"

Gerald nodded. "But my dad wants to save elect…"

"NOW, Gerald!"

He stared at the suddenly forceful Phoebe then said, "Okay, I'm going! Sheesh, Pheebs!"

So now, we join them presently. Gerald had to wait a moment because his dad was on the line.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Now…

"Hello, Gerald," said Arnold on the other line.

Gerald glanced at Phoebe and cleared his throat. Man, he thought, she looks mad. "Um, hey, Arnold," he stuttered. Yes, the coolest guy in the fourth grade and below was nervous to talk to his best friend. Well, hey, Arnold was madder than anything Gerald had ever heard or known. "Uh, I'm sorry for, um, you know…"

"Yeah, I know."

"Yeah, buddy, I know that was way out of line. I mean, you must be totally humiliated. 'Course, you probably would've been anyway…"

Arnold raised his eyebrow. What's he talking about? _Arnold, you're about to have a really weird conversation…_ "What do you mean, Gerald?"

Phoebe widened her eyes and looked at Gerald. What's he going to do?

"Well, I mean, Helga loves you, man," he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You musta been devastated!"

Phoebe sat down at Gerald's desk and put her hand on her head. Gerald, Gerald, Gerald. Oh, well, he didn't know…

On the other end, Arnold's eyes widened. What am I supposed to say to that? Arnold thought. _Okay, um, just, uh, I don't know! Ignore it! _What? I thought you were supposed to be the moralistic, smarter version of me! _Well, hey, not everyone can answer that in the right way. But as I said, ignore it! _

Arnold nodded to himself and sighed. He was still mad at Gerald. "Gerald, is this an apology, or are you just trying to help?"

Gerald looked at the phone for a moment, shook his head, and said, "The first, Arnold. Look, buddy, I'm really sorry about that. But hey, I got to bust on Helga!"

Phoebe glared at him.

"But that isn't the point," he said quickly. "I'm just sorry that I did this too ya, okay? I don't know how else to say it, man! It was funny, and I was shocked, so I blurted it out, okay? Okay?"

Arnold sighed in defeat. "All right, Gerald. I forgive you."

Gerald jumped up and said, "That's great. Hey, look. If the others kids make fun of you, I'll back you up, okay?"

They said good-bye, and they both hung-up the phone.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_Okay, my turn. _What? _Listen, I have to move your body if I wanna show you, okay? _Fine, Connor.  Take over. _My pleasure._

Arnold's feet took him up to his bedroom, and then to his desk. "Remember when she told you that she was Cecile?"

Arnold thought, Yes. 

"Well, you really liked her because of who she was, didn't you?" Yes, I did.

"So, if it was really Helga, and you liked who Cecile was, that means that you liked her even back then!" I know that. Well, at least, I think I did. But when she told me I thought something like that.

Connor went down to the bottom drawer at the desk and pulled out a picture of Lila. "You know who this is?" Yeah, it's Lila. _Why did you like her, like her? _Because she is so nice and sweet and pretty. _Yeah, but Phoebe is nice and sweet, but you don't like her, like her, now, do you? And you know that beauty isn't a factor! _Yeah, but still…_You just had a petty little crush on her since she liked you, didn't you? _Yes, I guess I did.

_Okay, now why do you like Helga? _I, I, I don't know. I guess I'm just seeing stuff I never saw before, and that stuff is good. _So, that means you like her for who she is? _In basic terms, yes, I do. _So, that would mean that you like-like Helga than Lila, and possibly more? _Maybe. It's hard to tell.

"Okay, now name all of the times she's been nice to you or someone else, or helpful, or even just a glimmer of someone behind the mask. I know there have been times, boy, I just need you to acknowledge them."

Well, way back in pre-school she was nice, until something happened. I think Harold started laughing at her. Then there was the time that she found my hat, the time at the Bio-Square, well, at least the end of it, the time when she talked to me after Lila dumped me for the first time, the time we had that egg project, the time she let Phoebe take her place after making her fall back in the city wide intelligence contest thing, the time she helped Phoebe when she decided to go back to the fourth grade because of how they were treating her, and some other things, too.

_So, you do like her, right? _I thought I did more than like her. At least that's what you're telling me. Okay, now, you had your turn using my body. My turn. _Sure, fine. _I think you'll like this.

Arnold stood up, since he had been sitting on the ground, and walked to his phone. "Hey, wait. I forgot I had a phone up here. Why didn't Gerald call my line?" _Arnold…_ "Sorry."

He grabbed the phone book and opened it up, and started scrolling down the list. He'd forgotten the phone number, and he needed it badly.

Well, that sure was long, wasn't it? Now do you understand why it took me so long? Okay, so I also ha\d a science project due todat, and I was working on it, and tests. And boring school stuff, too! *Anyway, check these stories out, too: *

Read: Time To Switch-A story where to opposites switch…only it's Helga and Lila!

Through the Compact Disc-Helga and Frannie do some serious thinking about what they should do next. I could have left the biggest cliffie, but decided to make a smaller one. Hey, they all have them!

V-Day II: My Hair Is Down-My Valentines Days story, no matter how late!

Stole: *This one's mine! One lonely, deranged boy goes out for three victims that made him feel even worse….They could have made it big…*

Well, hope ya liked this one and those. Well, see you next time on the Fanfiction.net Show! * Do you know how lame that was? *

~~Briana LFBH~~ *+^^Phebga MFM! ^^* (MFM-Madame Fortress Mommy) (* I also have my own name now! *)  
                                                                                   

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	10. Confessions of a Conscience

                                                                                                                  Explanations

Okay, how'd you like that last chapter? Huh, huh? Don't worry, you can bow and kiss my feet after you read this one. *All right, I'm not supposed to be in this part, but I can't…take…it! * Wait…what are you doing with that rope, and that sock? Who's watching the cash register?

* Ah, my old job. I'll miss you very much! * Well, remember when he was looking for the phone book? Remember when I said it was summer? Also, a lot is shown about the consciences.

Why do I have to go over this time and time again? You guys are lawyers for cripe's sake! You guys are supposed to be smart! You know what? I won't even say it, cuz you should know that I don't own Hey Arnold! Nope, I'm not…huh…oh, darn it!

Arnold flipped through his phone book. There was a number he needed now, and he needed it badly. _Well, I really do like what I'm seeing, Arnold. _Wait a minute, thought Arnold. How come I'm just noticing you? If you're my conscience, shouldn't you have been here all my life? _That's not the point, but okay. I've always been here in your head; it's just that now, well, we're not supposed to interfere with the person much, you know, with our persona. I've been helping you out your whole life, man, but we can only show ourselves in times like this, when you can't figure out anything! _Okay, I won't take that as an insult. _Good. Now, get over to the P's._

He found the page, and scrolled down until he saw the name. He punched in the numbers, and waited for the phone to ring.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_Helga, whatever you do, don't tell me that you didn't notice what Arnold did for you! _I know, Connie, he picked me up when I fainted and-_No, not that! When you started distressing over the kids joshing on you. _Yeah, he…oh! Oh my gosh, he did, didn't he? _Yes, he did. I wonder why? Huh. _What? No, he can't. I just told him about it three days ago. _So? You fell in love with him only ten seconds after seeing his face! _Oh, yeah. Well, still, he can't possibly…I mean, he's Arnold! He likes all those pretty and charming people, like…like Lila and Summer and Ruth! _You forgot someone. _I don't remember anyone else. _Who's the one person he actually went on a date with. _Cecile…I mean, me. But, wait a minute…oh. But, but, how? He liked Cecile, not me. _Look, you know that you pretend to be a bully, and that Cecile was you being you. Come off of it, girl. He liked you then, it's possible that he likes you know. _You know what, Connie? For once, I see your point. _Once? What do you mean?_

Ring, Ring, Ring. 

The phone rang, but at first, Helga was too busy trying to get Connie's words to make sense in her reality. But once the answering machine played a voice she was jerked away. 

"Hi, Helga. It's me, Arnold. Listen, um, you know what's been happening lately? Well…"

"Hello?" Helga reached across her bed to grab the phone. In the position she was in, she fell off of her bed. She thought, Never tell me to come off of it again, Connie. _Talk!_

"Uh, hey Arnold." She bit her lip. At any other point, she'd be prancing around, wrapping herself in a knot, but she remembered what he said about what was going on lately. Also, she'd had enough of Big Bob walking in on her whenever she fell due to Arnold.

Arnold was twirling the cord around his finger. Oh, was he nervous. "Uh, I guess you heard what I already said, so let me finish; I need to tell you something."

Helga's eyes jerked up from the phone to the center of her vision. Could it mean what she thought it would mean? "Uh, um, yeah, go on, Football Head. Oh, sorry."

"It's okay. It's not like you're calling me yutz, or paste for brains, or yellow-haired shrimp, or anything like that. At least I have a football shaped head."

Helga rolled her eyes. "Arnold, you didn't call me to tell me all the names I've called you." Connie, you better let go of my VOICE BOX! _Just give me a minute, Helga. It's my turn again. I actually get to do something, now. _But I wanna talk to him! "What did you call me for?"

Okay, no taking my voice, Connor! _But I have to. You aren't used to this, but I've been in Phil, Phil's dad, Miles, your great-great-grandfather, your…_Did you say you were in my dad's head before me? _Yeah. Hey, hey, wait a second; I don't think he's dead. Once your person haves a child, you're supposed to go to him. But I'm still kind of in each of your ancestors. If I were in a girl, then I would have been your mother's. _

"Um, Arnold? Are you there?"

"Oh, um, sorry. Listen, remember when you were naming all those things you've done for me? Well, I've been thinking, and, um, I guess I…" Okay, Connor, if you're going to be my confession speaker, or something, why are you stuttering? _I've never been in a nine-year-old who's confessing love! Plus, you're making me nervous! _"I, um, well, I guess you could say that I don't like Lila anymore."

Once again, Helga stared into nothing. Then, suddenly, she smiled. Connie, I can't talk. It's all you. _Okay. Yes! _Connie spoke slowly to make it seem like Helga was talking. "Arnold? Are you saying…what I think you're saying?"

Connor smirked with Arnold's mouth. "If you're thinking that I'm saying how I feel, then yes, I am."

Connie bit Helga's lip. _Is it just me, or does this not sound like Arnold? _Huh? What? Oh, um, I don't know! Who else would it be? _I think I know. _"Arnold, is this a conscience?"

_Oh, no, oh, no, oh, no. This is bad. _Well, wouldn't this have to be Helga's conscience to know that? _You know, sometimes you aren't as dense as your reputation speaks for. _I'll pretend I didn't hear that. Well, speak, Connor. "Is this Helga's conscience?"

At the same time, both consciences said, "Yes, it is."

Connie cleared her throat. "So, um, does Arnold know what he feels?"

Connor nodded and said, "Yeah, he does. Arnold is somewhere in-between liking, liking Helga and love."

Helga thought, All my years of loving and waiting have paid off! Then, she fell into Cloud Nine. 

"Um, Helga's gone. Soon as you said that, she went into dream mode. Oh, ouch!" There was a small, two-second pause. "What did you do that for? Oh, yeah."

Connor burrowed Arnold's eyes. "What is it?"

Connie sighed. "Helga slapped her cheek, and it hurt me more than it hurt her for some reason!"

"Oh, um, did Helga give you a name?"

"Connie."

"Connor."

"Well, then, Connor, don't you think these two should talk together?"

_NO!_

_NOOOOO!_

"Um, Arnold doesn't feel like he's ready."

"Really? Helga just said, 'NO!'"

"Well, then Arnold _really_ isn't ready. Huh? What? Oh, um, He wants to know if either of us are going to help the other out with the whole 'everyone in school knows' thing."

"I seriously think they should at least work _that _out with each other, don't you?"

Connor nodded. "Yeah, we can't take over vocal chords forever, now, can we?" 

Connie, no, no, no, no, no, I can't do it! I can't do this!

Connor, don't leave me hanging! I don't know what to say!_ Come on, man, you always know how to talk! _Yeah, but still…

"But still what?"

"Huh?"

"Arnold?"

"Helga?"

"Yes."

"Yes."

"Okay, then, our consciences who magically appeared suddenly apparently want us to talk about how we are supposed to handle the kids at school teasing us because I told you I love you on top of the FTI building, which you were trying to get to stop destroying you neighborhood, and now you seem to like me like me, and all of this happened in the last three days, and it's already going nuts!" Helga stopped for a minute. "Well, this shouldn't be _too_ hard, now, should it?"

Arnold sighed. There was the sarcasm. Well, at least she was thinking about the task ahead. "Gerald called me earlier. Right before I called you."

Helga stood up and almost fell over. "What? What did he say? What did you say? Oh, yeah, Phoebe said she'd do something. Oh, I want to beat the living snot out of him for causing all of this!"

"Helga, calm down!" He heard a few deep breaths and then regular ones before he continued. "He apologized. He said that he was sorry, that he was just laughing so hard he forgot, and that he was sorry for me."

Helga cocked a part of her eyebrow. "What?"

Arnold bit his lip. "He doesn't exactly like you."

Helga exploded. "What! Why, he humiliates the both of us and he says that he feels sorry for you because I like you? I'm gonna beat his kid's snot out of him now! I mean…" She realized what she was doing, and then stopped. "Sorry, Arnold. Now, what are we supposed to do? School starts soon."

"We could just act normal. You know, ignore them and stuff."

"Oh, yeah, that'll work, Arnoldo. I mean, Arnold. Sorry, but it's stuck. Anyway, why don't we just act like we always did? That way it would seem like it never happened!"

"Helga, after you fainted in front of them, I don't think they'll be convinced. Besides, I think word has spread by now throughout the other classes."

_Listen, Helga, you can't hide from it forever. _ But how am I supposed to face the kids at school now? I had a reputation, and now it's all…_No more of that! Stop it all! The whole reason you have a reputation is because everyone is either annoyed or afraid of you. Do you seriously want that? _Uh, um, I, uh, well…

"Fine, Arnold, whatever!" Helga sat on her bed and crossed her arms. "It might work."

Arnold leaned back in mock surprise. "Helga, did you just agree with me?"

Helga but my hand on her cheek and gasped, also faking. "Arnold, did you just make fun of me?"

The two that were on the phone began to laugh very hard. Except for one misconception.

"Olga! Get off of the phone! I need to call a client! NOW!"

Helga sucked her teeth with her tongue. I don't want to get off of the phone! _Look, tomorrow you guys can talk. _Fine.

"Look, Arnold, Bob wants the phone. I've gotta go, okay?"

Arnold nodded. "See you tomorrow Helga."

"Bye, Football Head."

"You know, I still don't know if I like that name?"

"Yeah, how did you get it? Neither of your grandparents have one."

Arnold bit his lip. Should I tell her, Connor? _Go ahead. There's no wrong in telling._ Okay. "Um, it's from my mother's side. I didn't get her hair though." 

Helga grabbed her elbow. "Oh, I'm sorry I asked."

"No, no, Helga, it's all right."

"OLGA!"

"I've gotta go now."

"Bye."

"Bye. Again."

When Helga hung up, she walked over to her closet. She climbed the ladder into the attic. She stared for a while at the statue made in Arnold's likeness. Did she really need it now? What do you think, Connie? _There's something I have to tell you first, Helga. _What? What is it? _In a few days, I'll have to go back into the shadow of your brain. _What? Why? How? _It's regulation. I have to. I'll still be here, just not with my persona. _You can't. _Let's just get back to the fact that you walked up here. It's your call. _

Helga looked up at the great shrine. She sighed. She didn't need this thing anymore. She had the real thing to talk to now.

She smiled, as did Connie. Two people smiling with the same mouth about Helga. 

She stood up, grabbed a box, and climbed up to the top of the bear and pulled off the head. She took the blankets and face paints and stuffed them in another box. When she turned to her poem books, she shrugged. She'd keep those.

She turned around and climbed down the ladder into her room. She walked from her room and down the stairs. When she reached the foot of them, she saw her father place the phone down. She rolled her eyes. A five minute call interrupted the phone call in which Arnold said those long awaited words. 

Isn't the world full of ironic events?

Well, those who like the shrine, my deepest apologies. It's a symbol that she can be herself and talk now. Those who like Connie and Connor, I'm sorry about that, too. But, hey, if they appeared, they had to disappear. Anyway, I'm almost done. I have a while to go, though, and I think you guys will like how it'll end. ** Oh, what is it? ** You have your own stories to worry about, Phebga. ** Man! ** Well, that's it for now! All of your reviews have made this thing better than I'd expected it to be. I thought I'd just get this far with a lot less, but, boom, inspiration! ** And I'd also like to thank my mommy, and God, and Craig Bartlett, and my wonderful friend Phebga Madame Fortress Mommy, who helped me every step of the way with her clever thinking and… ** Okay. Well, then, until next time! Reviews Please! I'm shooting for fifty of them, okay?   

Read: 

Time To Switch-A story where to opposites switch…only it's Helga and Lila!

Through the Compact Disc-Francesca makes a hard decision, and Helga gets prepared for the concert. Deana's realizing things, and Arnold is very confused about what to do next. 

V-Day II: My Hair Is Down-My Valentines Days story, no matter how late! 

Where's the Studio? **Look at the title. Studio, Hey Arnold, Where is it? It's a switch-a-roo, people! **

~~Briana LFBH~~   
                                                                                   

                                                                                    Know


	11. Torments

                                                                                                                  Explanations

Well, who would think Arnold would have a lot of trouble telling Helga that he liked her? Okay, about everyone here has read a story with that in it, but still…Well, anyway, as I type, there has been no one who has reviewed, except for one. (Thank you, person who reviewed, and I know who you are. Thankies and your welcomeies!) . If I haven't typed this, than some did. Let's go!

Uh, what to say………Connor gets an answer, and so do we, and the school year begins. Tsk, I just didn't have the heart to stop it at one point, so I extended it just a bit. 

Disclaimer: for definition, go to chappie number one.

Quote: Don't let him in! I'm not even cute yet!" Amanda Bynes: What A Girl Wants.

Arnold hung up the phone and calmly walked up into his room. After pulling up the stairs and closing his door, he chuckled slightly and then he lay down on his bed.

_What's so funny? _Oh, nothing. It's just that this proves Gerald right. And who'd thought that I'd be close to in love with Helga? _Okay, why? _Why they wouldn't think that? _No, why you are close to in love with her? _Uh…can you give me a minute? _~Sigh~. Sure, whatever. Go read a book or something. _Fine.

Arnold picked up a The Fancy Crew Mystery book "Chapter One," he said to himself, "The Small House on the Corner."

Halfway through chapter two, Arnold's mind began to drift away from the book to something else. Connor was able to look into what he was thinking, and in doing so he smiled. His thoughts were answering his question.

It would be hard to say exactly what Arnold was thinking, since he was in a small abyss, so I shall put it in the words of a common paragraph. It will be easier to understand that way.

"Hm…why do I like Helga? Probably because she's really nice when she lets you see. But, no, other people are nice, too, so that can't be it. Well, she really is quite artistic, and I know. The pink book, meeting her Cecile self, and, um, well, the shrine thing are why, but that isn't the point. But, you know, she is just so amazing. She's so strong inside from hiding herself for so long that it's made her strong emotionally, too. But it also made her soft, and both things are reasons why I love her. Oh, how are you going to say it when it can't be said? How can you put it into words when there are none? She's everything that I'm not**;** she's better at judging people, she's poetic, she's a better speaker, and she, she, she's just my other piece."

_Aha, now you see it, and now you come off of it._

Connor suddenly speaking/thinking jerked Arnold from his state of mind into reality. He jumped up, pushed himself with his hands, and fell of off the bed. Never tell me to come off of it, Connor. _Arnold, do you know what you were just thinking? _Not really. I remember some stuff. I remember saying Helga was nice. _No, you said much more than that. I won't get into details, but now I know my answer to both questions. _You only asked one. _I was thinking another. _Okay, you know why I almost love Helga, so what's the other? _When would you realize what is true: that you are meant to be with Helga. _To say my own words, I didn't think that, and to quote Sweet Home Alabama, "Nobody finds their soul mate when they're ten years old." _Did you even see the ending of that movie? _No, why? _Never mind, the point is, everyone has a missing piece, as you thought, and don't say that you didn't, because your mind was thinking, not you, and Helga is yours, which you also said. _I think I understood that. So you're saying that deep inside my mind, I love Helga? _No, I'm not. _What then? _Deep inside your HEART you love Helga. _Okay, then, a week ago this would have surprised me. _A week ago you'd be fixing up Block-a-pa-looza. _Connor. _Sorry, man._

Arnold sat up and put his head in his hands. School started soon, and he wasn't ready to go there where everyone knew that Helga liked him, and where everyone thought he liked her. _Arnold? That's true.  _     

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

A few days later…

Why hasn't Arnold talked to me since the phone call? _I don't know! _Maybe he doesn't like me like me after all, and he's embarrassed to see my face. _Helga? That's not true, and you know it. _Yeah, but how are we supposed to know? He hasn't talked to us! _Yeah, why isn't Connor making him do anything? _Well, at least I get to see him today, no matter what he does. Even though I really don't wanna go to school right now, especially with everybody knowing and what I promised Arnold I'd do. _You are going to talk to Pheebs, though, right? _Yeah, whatever. Now, how am I supposed to act? Myself, or should I be my bully image? _What would Arnold say? _Fine, then! I'll try, but neither of you better get upset if I can't control beating Harold's gut in, and maybe yelling at Rhonda a little bit. _Oh, be my guest. I may be your conscience, but I still don't mind giving an annoying brat a good slap every now and then. _Okay…

Helga stopped next to the bus stop. Apparently, you must have noticed them mention school, for today is the first day of their fifth grade year. She waited for five minutes before the bus picked her up. She was the only one who attended P.S. 118 in her neighborhood, noting the fact that Bob wanted to tear down Arnold's and everyone else's homes. Anyway, that's beyond the subject.

As she boarded the bus, she tried to keep her cool. As she walked to the seat that Phoebe sat in, she closed her eyes tightly, trying to ignore the snickers and gossips that she heard about her. When she sat in her seat, she put her backpack at her feet and covered her head with her hands and put her head between her knees. 

Phoebe looked on at the first glimpse of a scared and nervous Helga. Well, except for when she fell into the flood, this was the first. Plus, this was more emotionally concerned for Helga's sake. She had made Gerald apologize to Arnold, but what he'd said wasn't exactly accurate or what he should have said. Yet she still felt like something should be done. With all of the times Helga had helped her, she should help her in return, shouldn't she? But how could she make anything better for Helga?

"Just don't make anything worse and stay by me, okay, Pheebs?"

Phoebe covered her mouth. Had she said that out loud? "Don't worry, Helga," she reassured. "I'll try to stand up for…"

"Well, if it isn't Helga G. Pataki."

They turned to see the person in the seat behind them. Rhonda was leaning over the back of their seat. "Wait until everyone who hasn't heard hears that Helga has a soft spot for somebody!" She stood up in the aisle and said very loudly, "If you didn't know, Helga loves Arnold! It's true!"

The laughs and talking grew even louder than before. Helga covered her ears again and sunk into her seat. What am I supposed to do know? _Don't show your fear. Just try to ignore them. What they think doesn't have anything to do with you. _Yeah. Okay.

Helga sat up in her seat, dug in her backpack, and pulled out a book. With absolutely no readable expression on her face, she began to read. The people on the bus looked at her. Usually she'd be pounding Rhonda's brains in, or at least be yelling at them. This was definitely not Helga, but some other form of her. While most of the conversations about her continued, a few ceased and started somewhere else. 

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_Arnold, are you sure you can get through this? I mean it could be hard for you to keep your cool. _Don't worry, Connor. It'll be fine, except for the fact that I'm going to have to face Helga. _I thought that would be a good thing. _Yeah, well, it could be embarrassing to confront her, let alone the entire class. ^^I hit writers block here, but I recovered! Yeah! ^^ Come_, on, man, you can do this! Once Helga told you, she's been talking to you a whole lot better. It should be the same for you, now, since there are no more awkward feelings about her liking you, and you most likely not, but since it turns out that your feelings are the same, than there shouldn't be. _Connor? I think I would have understood without you making such a long sentence. _Sorry, man. _Still, I'm worried! What if something happens and Helga loses it? _Connie ought to take care of that. _Okay, then. All right. Hey, here's the bus.

The bus pulled up to the second to last stop before the school, and Arnold boarded it. Before the bus even stopped, though, he could see people looking at him in awe that Helga would actually fall in love with him. He tried to take advice Connor had given him before and ignored them.

Helga stared at a spot on the bus seat in front of her when Arnold passed by. They both gave each other a quick glance, but even as quickly as it was, they were both telling each other to stay cool and be prepared for some sinister tricks.

Arnold took his usual seat next to Gerald and sunk down into it. Gerald knew plenty well why he was so down in the dumps today. No, it wasn't the fact that it was the first day of another nine months of school, but something that was his entire fault. Of course Arnold would be embarrassed! Who wouldn't be if the whole school knew that your arch nemesis actually secretly loved you! Gerald couldn't even imagine it. Oh, how little people could know.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold walked toward his locker and began to fiddle with the combination. It was a different locker, so for some reason, the combination was somehow even more difficult to memorize and do than last year's. Well, he didn't really have the time to finish trying, because an annoying, yet vaguely taunting voice caught his ear.

"Hey, Aaaaaaaaarrrrrnold. What's the matter? Haven't seen your girlfriend Helga to open your locker for you?"

As expected, Harold had appeared behind Arnold to have the pleasure of trying to make somebody mad. Arnold looked down, and then up at Harold with his I'm-annoyed-so-I'm-only-opening-my-eyes-to-the-half-way-point look. It just made Harold laugh even harder.

"Oh, look everybody!" he cried out. "Arnold's embarrassed about Helga lovin' him! Aw, so you don't want that big girl to like you like…"

"Did I hear somebody mention my name?" Arnold turned around and, thankfully, there stood Helga. 

_Okay, now, Helga, remember, just keep it down a tiny little notch, okay? _Connie, let me handle this, okay? _Fine, but just to let you know, if it gets up there, I'm coming in, okay? _Sure, fine, all right then.

Harold smirked at his opportunity. "Hey, Helga. You trying to protect your boyfriend, huh? Ha, ha, ha!"

Helga crossed her arms and took a sideways glance at Arnold. He knew that she would try not to go too far, but still get the point down. "Yeah, Harold," she said, looking the older boy in the face. "Maybe I am, but what's it to you?"

Well, you can expect the shock and surprise that arose in everyone, including Arnold, Connor, Connie, and even Helga. When the stun wore off, Harold laughed really hard. "Now, you woulda thought that would happen? Helga really does love him!" He pointed and started up everyone within hearing range to giggle or laugh out. Arnold looked over at Helga like she was going to do something to Harold that she would regret.

Helga walked even closer to Harold to the point where she was six inches away from his face. She wasn't smiling mockingly anymore. Now, she had absolutely no visible expression except slight aggravation. "Look, Pink Boy," she began, "so what if I like somebody? If it's me doing it, focus all of your attention on _me_." Five inches with everyone watching. "Now, how come every time somebody even hints at teasing_ you_, _you_ always run away to scream and cry, but you always overdo it to everybody else? Why is that Harold? Do you cry from laughter?"

Harold shook his head slowly from side to side with his eyes wide. Four inches with a few teachers watching. "I didn't think so. I'm not gonna blow you this time, bucko, because Wartz looks out at all of the fifth and sixth graders each year. But next time I see you do this to _anybody _who didn't do _anything_ except something they couldn't control, I will do something to make Wartz look at me, got it, weasel?"

Five inches, six inches, and then seven inches as Harold backed away from Helga before she could do anything worse to humiliate him or hurt him anymore, nodding his head.  Helga walked back a little bit to where Arnold was. She turned her head and looked at him. "Are you going to open that locker or not…" She paused for a moment. "Football Head?"

Arnold smiled and for the first time since he said his goodbyes to his grandparents, he spoke. "Yeah, Helga, I am. See you in class."

Helga turned toward Mr. Packenham's room while Arnold struggled to open his locker and get to class before the bell rang. Gerald, who had seen the whole thing, walked over with a curious look on his face. "Arnold?"

Arnold looked up at his friend, smiled, and then looked back down into his locker again.

Gerald lifted an eyebrow and said, "Arnold, how come the first words you've said all day were to Helga, and how come you're looking okay with all of this Helga liking you thing?"

Arnold pulled out his books and shrugged. "I guess I'm seeing a side of Helga I had never see-"    

Hands went up in between Gerald and Arnold and shook. They were, apparently, Gerald's hands. "Whoa, whoa, hold up there, man." He put his arms down at his sides. "I think I know what's going on here."

Arnold knew exactly what he was thinking. "Yeah, I know what you think you know, and it's right." As an after thought, he said, "But don't tell anybody right now, okay?" 

As surprised, freaked out, and pleased with himself as he was, he nodded slowly. Then he said, "Actually, Phoebe gave me the hint. That girl's got an eye on her."

Arnold put his books under his arms and walked to class with Gerald. They sat down two seconds before the bell rang. Lots of the kids were looking at them, but the two main characters of this story looked at Mr. Packenham the whole time.

Phoebe and Gerald exchanged looks that meant two different things. Gerald's meant: "I can't believe that you were right!"

The girl across the room's look meant the opposite: "Weren't you waiting for this to happen? I was."

Well, do you guys like it? Is it a cliffie, because if it was, that was unintentional. Well, tell me how you guys liked it, okay? Yes, okay, do it. 

I NEVER THOUGHT THAT IT WOULD MAKE IT TO THIS POINT!!!!!! I mean, I thought that it would have like six chappies, but here it is! I already did this, didn't I? Oh, well, here it is again! Thank you everyone, and more thankies if you keep on! Tell me if it's gotten boring, because readers aren't reading as much, and I like my stories to be interesting. See, I'm not a review beggar, just an I-want-my-fics-to-be-cool person. Well, anyway, I love advice and stuff, so review me! 

Read: 

Through The Compact Disc: Arnold's child, Deana, receives a gift for Christmas. It's a CD. The singer is Helga Pataki. How does the family, including Arnold, react?

Time to Switch: The angels are at it again, with two little girls who are totally clueless on the other person's part. Helga and Lila are the subjects.

Valentine's Day II: My Hair Was Down: A story about the V-Day's dance approaching…and somebody is taking whatecer measures possible to find a person he may just love…

~~Briana LFBH (Briana Loves Foot-Ball Head)~~   
                                                                                   

                                                                                    Know


	12. Explaining Memories

Explanations 

Well, thankies to all of the positive feedback ya'll gave to me! Please go to my oldest story, Hillwood Meets Chloe, and look at the last chappie. There you will find an important author's note about that story and Time To Switch, another story of mine. Oh, and thank you so much, arnoldfan. It wasn't a review for this, but…anyway, thankies!!!! Well, anyway, onward, into the wild blue yonder…! Oh, reviews are now being answered!

Helgagurl46-Yeah, that was a symbol of her changing since she didn't have to pretend as much anymore…I tried to keep some just a pinch of violence in there, but not to much, just to be IC.

HazelIris-Why, thanks for looking at it!

Wyldheart-~wink~ you better keep it up…hope you like this chappie!

JAM-Well, that's because she went into shock and stuff…Arnold was surprised at his friend's betrayal, and Phoebe isn't the beating up type of person, but I'm glad you like it!

I have no idea what exactly I'm gonna type as I'm writing this part, so you will just have to stay patient.

I'm not going to say it. After twelve chappies and other people's stories, ya'll lawyers ought to know that an eleven year old cannot possibly take any credit in it.

"And you guys better be glad it wasn't a fart award, cuz I would've won that too."-Justin Timberlake

I am slightly bringing back the dreaming Arnold.

The second lunch period bell rang and the third through sixth grades willingly piled out of their classrooms. The other grades had lunch before, and earlier, than the rest. The cafeteria was only so big.

Of course, you don't want to hear about the cafeteria, do you? You'd rather know why it was brought up, don't you? I thought so. After this story so far, there shouldn't have to be any clarification on that, but if you like…

"Arnold, are you sure that you knew what I was thinking was right?"

"Gerald, stop bugging me."

The two were among the first in the lunch line, bringing their books along so that they'd have a moment's private time to discuss what Gerald had been, and still was, slightly surprised at. "Arnold, how can you? I know I should have brought this up a long time ago, but I thought you'd be, uh, busy with what had just happened and all. Again, how can you like her? She's been your mortal enemy since I, and possibly you, can remember!"

Arnold sighed. "I can remember a lot before that." His mind drifted off into those sweet memories he had before the meaner Helga. Most were of his parents and the boarders, but one that hadn't been used for a long time became unearthed.

~~Flashback: One that's been used plenty of times, but usually in Helga's mind. ~~

He was so excited. It was his first day of pre-school, and he had always liked new things, even if sometimes they were just a little scary. He looked out the window and was surprised to see that it had begun to rain even harder than it had been before. His grandpa had dressed him very good for the occasion, he decided.

**After a few minutes, he heard his grandpa say, "Okay, Short man, here we are." He looked back into the back seat. "Do you think you can go inside by yourself? Do you want me to come with you?"**

**He shook his head innocently. "No, grampa, I'm fine." He climbed out of the back seat as he pulled out his yellow umbrella and said good-bye to his grandpa. He walked around the front and waved to him as the car started down the street and turned the corner. **

**When he turned around, he expected to see the door clear of people since he hadn't heard anything, but he discovered a little girl his age standing there. She looked really cold and very wet, while he was so very warm and dry. She shivered a little bit, and remembered that his grandma said that if you stand in the cold for to long, you can get really sick. He hated being sick and didn't want whoever this girl was to get sick, either. He walked up with his umbrella high enough to cover the slightly taller girl.**

**She looked up, confused at how the rain had stopped falling on her for some reason, and saw him smiling at her. _There, _he thought. _Now she won't get sick. _**

**The girl still seemed sad, so he said something to make her feel better. He tried to think of something nice to tell her, and then he noticed the big, puffy, pretty cute, pink bow resting between her pigtails.**

**"I like your bow."**

**She looked even more surprised, and it made him smile even more when she said, "Huh?" _She's kinda nice. _**

"I like your bow, cuz it's pink," and an afterthought, "like your pants."

**When the girl finally smiled and he was sure she didn't feel too bad now, he walked inside and took off the rubber yellow coat.**

~~Flashback Ends~~

"Arnold, wake up and get your tapioca pudding!"

Arnold was jerked out of his mindless stroll down Memory Lane when he heard two people yell the same thing at the same time.

Helga and Gerald stared at each other with confusion on their eyes. After a moment, they shook their heads. Gerald turned back to Arnold as he finally took the last thing on the lunch line.

"Arnold, you've been crazy before, but this is the brink of human ability," said Gerald. "I do not understand it, and I'm supposed to!"

Arnold was beginning to get slightly annoyed again, but he was patient. "Gerald, unless you want me to give you the explanation, then I don't see why-"

Gerald held up his hand and pointed to the cash register, signaling his answer.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga bit her lip tightly as she walked through the lunch line with Phoebe at her side. 

Now that they were outside of the confinements of their classroom, she knew that she was vulnerable to the crude remarks that would be passed to her. Just stand strong, Helga. _I think you're getting the hang of this whole 'don't be as mean but still be strong and your defensive self but not overboard' thing very nicely. _Yeah, I just hope that I can get through with this, Connie.

"Helga, who's Connie? Not that sixth grader, I hope."

Helga looked beside her and saw Phoebe looking up at her. "Oh, um, I guess I just got a little caught up in my thought, Pheebs." She sighed and took her tapioca pudding and walked toward the cash register.

When she had paid and Phoebe joined her, they walked toward their usual table and sat. Phoebe could tell that Helga didn't feel like talking, so she stayed quiet.

But Helga's mood took a sudden U-turn as she smiled to herself and had an urge to scream, "Oh, I love that little, gorgeous football head!" _Ah. I was wondering when you'd finally say that! This whole time and barely one swoon from you! I was getting worried about ya, Helga. _Who cares, Connie, I'm in love with the boy! And there's a possibility that he does, too! _Okay, but remember: there is a place that is NOT Cloud Nine, okay? _Whatever. I know that. Now let me eat!

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_Come on, man, you can do it. It was your idea, now I get to make it happen for you. Now, either you do it, or I will. _Connor, no, I don't want to anymore. It'll be embarrassing. _Ugh, you're hopeless! I'll do it! _No, Connor!

This conversation started when the kids at Arnold's table began to discuss Arnold's 'problem'. Only he and Gerald knew how Arnold felt, though. Harold made another remark about it (only not as tauntingly) and Sid created a small speech about how wrong they were for each other, etcetera. Then, for some odd reason, an idea came into his mind to prove them wrong, or at least give a hint. Connor thought it was an awesome idea, which apparently made Arnold turn it down.

Connor, no, don't do it. _Too late, Arnold, I'm hyped up. I'm doing this, okay? _No, please, don't!

Connor turned Arnold's body around while Sid said, "I mean, come on, just look at how Helga-"

Connor took a deep breath and yelled, "Hey, Helga! What are you doing after school?"

There was a small pause. "…treats…him."

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Oh, my god, oh, my god, what did he DO that for? He's still such a bonehead! _Helga, don't do anything. _I may be aggressive, but I'm not stupid __

Helga's eyes shot straight up to look into Arnold's. There was an awkward feeling between the two. As Connor sunk back into Arnold, Arnold realized how stupid his idea had been. Now there was even more of it out.

Okay, so maybe not everyone noticed, but there were some people in the area who were not idiots.

"Oh. My. Word. Arnold likes Helga back!!!!"

Rhonda had her hand against her chest and her eyes open in shock that was only partly exaggerated. Don't get me wrong, there was still shock in it, but…

Those who hadn't gotten the picture before finally did, and howled laughter at the now semi-unofficial couple. Connie, what do I do??? _I have no idea. All I know is that the person who spoke had to be Arnold's conscience thing. _Whoever it was, everyone's busy, so I'm going to sneak out. _At least you're not punching anybody out…_

!@!#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Connor, why did you do that? _What? Now everyone will stop busting on you. _No, they'll start busting on me for liking Helga, too! _Huh? Wait, I didn't…oh. Sorry. Hey, isn't that Helga crawling under the janitor's little pushy cart? _If it is, then I'm meeting her out there. If it isn't, well, then I'm just getting out of here. _Good plan. Temporarily at least. _

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga was leaning against the hallway wall. Listening to all of the jokes and cracks everyone in the cafeteria were either laughing at or worse, making them up, was possibly the worst humiliation she had ever experienced…except for the Day After, but that wasn't embarrassing anymore.

Anyway, to what Helga was thinking about.

Why did Arnold have to do that? He may know what I feel, but he is STILL the densest boy ever! He knew what would have happened if he said that! He may be sinkable, but he isn't an idiot! How could he do this to himself… and me! 

_Cool it Helga. Maybe it was that Connor dude. Maybe Arnold didn't realize it would hurt either of you, but maybe help it. _Yeah, Connie, like having everyone mock us helps us. _It's a suggestion._

Helga sighed and turned around toward her locker.

"Uh, hey Helga."

She stopped dead in her tracks as she recognized the voice. A small glare formed on her face as she turned around and yelled, "What could have made you DO that, Football Head?" 

She turned, and Arnold wasn't there. At least he wasn't there alone.

Her eyes widened as she said calmly, but very, very dangerously, "Gerald, Phoebe, what the HECK are you doing here?"

Heeheehee. I know, I haven't had one of these, and I felt like doing it…If you wanna tell me I'm evil, go ahead…Sometimes I like to be. Well, how about it? I might make the 50 point mark…but only if you guys help me w/ it. And will you guys check out Valentine's Day Two, and Time to Switch, and most important, you guys have GOT to read at least the last chappie of HMC, okay???? Good, you understand. Thanks everybody! Oh, yeah, and visit Phebga's stories and her upcoming BSSEI experiment, a sci-fi. Well, see you guys later!

Briana Luvs Foot Ball Head ~~~ 

                                                                                    Know


	13. Pesting Pests

Explanations 

Hi, hi, everybody! Here I am again…don't you just want to hug me and give me kisses? Okay, so you don't, but I know that you want to see the next chappie…see, I'm smart! Ahem, well, anyway…Oh, and Phebga wanted me to tell you that it might take some time for any of her fics to come out…she's sort of having trouble getting logged in for some reason. Well, anyway…

Puppies Cute: No, no, no, don't squeeze the life out of his head! ~Covers the football shaped thing with one hand and hands story to her with the other~ Here it is! Oh, and thanks for telling me that about the flashback…glad you like Connor and Connie, too, and you know what? Something you said about them IS going to happen…for what, you'll just have to see…I've never had to answer so many of one person's reviews at once!

Arnoldfan: I know…evilness! Thanks again for liking it, too, and V-Day II.

La, la, la, la, la, la, I can't hear you say that I don't own HA!, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la…

"Oh, and Harry. If you die down there, you're welcome to share my toilet."-Moaning Myrtle-Harry Potter II

OMG, credit where credit is due!!!!!! I sort of got the idea of the consciences taking over sometimes from Animorphs, and the consciences basically, um, I forgot earlier, but Serap gave me the idea…thankies, Serap! Okay, uh, onward…

"Gerald, Phoebe, what the HECK are you doing here!"

Phoebe smiled guiltily and waved her fingers. "Uh, hey, Helga."

Gerald, well, he was just a little bit more straightforward. "Okay, Helga," he said, "how is it that in one week, Arnold ends up like-liking you? Arnold wouldn't tell us, so now it's your turn."

Helga glared over at Arnold and practically yelled, "Arnold, do you just want attention or something!?!?" 

After a pause, he shook his head. "I tried to sneak out, but Phoebe saw me and soon after, so did Gerald. It wasn't my fault!"

"Oh, but it was your fault that now the ENTIRE SCHOOL KNOWS ABOUT US!!!!"

"It's not my fault, Connor did it!"

"That's what Connie said, but you could have stopped him."

"Helga, you know that they have as much power as we do."

"Yeah, but…"

"Hold up, hold up, hold up! Who is Connor and Connie, how could it have been their fault, and what kind of power?"

The two that were previously quarrelling stopped abruptly and turned to face a red-faced Gerald. Well, if people who suddenly got matched wrong (in your eyes, okay?) started talking about weird things that you didn't understand, you would be frustrated, too. 

Phoebe looked at Gerald and put her hand on his shoulder. "Gerald, clam down, okay?"

Helga shook her head and looked back at Arnold, only this time not as menacingly. It was more pleading than angry. Basically, it was saying, "You better help me with this, boy."

Okay, Connor, what now? _Arnold, sorry, but I can't help you as much. Besides, all you have to do is tell what happened. _How can I tell Gerald! _He's your best friend. _Okay. Okay, then.

Connie, a little help here! _Look, Phoebe already pretty much knows what has happened. All you've got to do is explain it to Gerald. _One, Gerald is totally different from Pheebs, and two, WHY do I keep on hearing the word 'explain'? _One, you've got Arnold to help you, and two, well, uh, I don't know!_

In unison, the two of them said, "All right, Gerald." Only one of them added an 'o' at the end. 

Arnold started. "It all started after the party during the Day After. Well, actually, it all started on the FTI building. Uh, that's when Helga told me that she loved me, and, uh…"

"Basically, we both denied it happened. Of course, Arnold didn't believe me, and he wanted answers, I told him them, he got to know me better, and ta-da! Now we're an unofficial slash official couple." Arnold didn't exactly help me.

"Yeah, and, Gerald, you know what happened at the park and all, too. You were there."

_Yes he did. _Are you ever wrong? _Not usually, no. Sometimes, but this time I wasn't._

Gerald put his hand on his best friend's shoulder and said, "Arnold, I have no earthly clue how exactly this all happened. Can you give me the details?" When Arnold nodded, the two of them walked down away from the two girls a ways and began to talk.

When Helga turned to Phoebe, she saw her gazing at Helga with impatience. "What?"

Phoebe sighed and said, "Helga, I apologize, but who is this Connie person that you spoke of in Arnold and yours' argument?"

_Oh, okay, didn't expect that. _This is your call. _Uh, um, well, I guess we could tell her. When this is all over, no one will have much of a memory of me, if only vague. _Huh! What? Okay, questions later. Criminy, take over, Connie!

Helga closed her eyes and when they were opened, Connie controlled them. She glanced at Phoebe and smiled. "Hi, Phoebe. I'm Connie."

Phoebe cocked one of her eyebrows and whispered, "Helga, your name is not Connie. Are you feeling all right?"

Connie shook her head. "No, Phoebe, I'm not Helga. I'm just in Helga's body." She sighed. It would be difficult to tell this to a girl of science. "I'm a conscience. I'm, well, Helga's advice giver. I give her some moral help, along with, um, others."

Connie! _Oh, you know who I was talking about, did you? _Are you the one who made me dream of Arnold giving me moral advice? _No, but I helped. _Are you serious! _Look, your mind started it; I just gave it a finishing touch, okay? Remember, I am, basically, you._

"Um, Helga, I mean, uh, Connie."

Connie focused back on Phoebe. "Do you believe me?"

Phoebe bit her lip and looked up at Helga's face. "Well, I suppose. I mean, Helga does sometimes change her course of direction, and, well, Arnold has someone named 'Connor', so I don't suppose you both are, well, insane."

Connie leaned back slightly and crossed her arms approvingly. "Well, that was easier than I thought."

Suddenly, Phoebe's expression turned to a grave one. "Connie, Helga? Uh, could we discuss something?"

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Let me get this straight, Connor. Somehow, you, a conscience, appeared after Arnold and Helga, well, discussed a little bit, and that you are Arnold's moral advice giver?"

Arnold's shoulders, which were now being used by Connor, shrugged. "Yeah, except part of that is just Arnold's personality, not mine."

Gerald dropped his jaw slightly and it seemed like he didn't believe it. Then, hesitantly, he nodded. "Okay. However crazy that is, I guess I believe you. Had no idea consciences could do stuff like that, but…" He looked back up at Connor. "Do you think I could talk to Arnold for a minute?"

_Well, here we go…_ Okay. "Okay, Gerald, what's up?"

"Look, man, I'm sorry about everything! I didn't know that it would come to this, and I really didn't know you'd get to this point, and I'm sorry, and I just was laughing so hard I…"

"Gerald, snap out of it!" Arnold put his hands on both of Gerald's shoulders. "Look, I've forgiven you, okay? I was mad at you, and I guess the effects haven't worn off yet, but I've accepted your apology, okay?"

He nodded. "Yeah, okay." Arnold took his _hands_ away and Gerald put his hands in his pockets. "So, what are you and Helga going to do?"

Okay, um, what was that? Why does him saying that seem weird? _It may be because he's accepted it? _Oh, yeah. _You'll sink in a puddle, boy…_

"Gerald, you haven't all ready accepted it, now, have you?" He smirked playfully at his best friend.

"Okay. Man, you've had a lot of crushes: Ruth, Connie, not Helga's, but the sixth grader, Ms. Felter, Lila, that summer girl, and that girl from Arnie's, Hilda. This one looks like you seriously like-like her, even though it's still hard to believe. I'm behind you every step of the way, buddy." He smiled back playfully. "You're a bold kid Arnold. A _bolder _than _bold _kid."

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Phoebe, why'd you have to bring that up? I'm trying to ignore all of the kids in the cafeteria mocking and ridiculing me! I can hear them right now! Criminy, I hate this! What is wrong with Arnold and me liking each other? What! What!"

"Helga, Helga, calm down!" urged Phoebe. "You can endure this like everything else you have. Look, maybe you and Arnold should talk about how you are going to handle this privately; do you think I should summon Gerald?"

_BRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!! _(A/N: You didn't think lunch would go on forever now, did you?)

Helga looked straight at the speaker above the two of them. Oh, no. _Don't listen to anybody, okay? Tough it out if it's needed, but otherwise, does what you did with Harold. _Yeah, okay then. Fine. "Look, Pheebs, I'll talk to you later."

"Are you sure you're going to have the time? Won't you be walking home with your boyfriend, Arnold?"

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Oh, great. _Man, no time to do what Gerald said! _"Look, Gerald, I'll try and talk later, but we have to get to Mr. Packenham's room."

Gerald wasn't looking at Arnold, but past his shoulder. Arnold twisted around to see what was captivating his friend so much. "Oh, no. Rhonda, don't." As he whispered, he began subconsciencly walking toward the two of them and the small group that surrounded them. Connor…_Boy, I have to do what I can to get this over with, all right? I have to go back to stored persona phase soon. _All right, then. Just, well, help me out, okay? _No problem, buddy._

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga slowly turned around the look in the light brown and perfectly mascara-applied eyes. "Lloyd."

Rhonda smirked. "I don't believe I've had a chance to tell you how happy I am for you."

Okay, what is up? She's got something up her sleeve. _Yeah, totally. _Oh, I'm so not going to appreciate this.

The taller, more fashion-coordinated girl's smile widened. "I mean, a really great candidate for a boyfriend just happens to like you. That's great news for you." She paused to take in her victim's confused and suspicious face. Then, barely audible, she muttered, "Of course, on Arnold's half, I don't know."

Helga glared at the person in front of her and kept quiet. It was a glare that was beyond anything she had once done, because it was full of coldness. How dare she say that! _Now, Helga, clam down, it is no biggie. It's just her opinion, okay? _Connie, you might have to take over before I do something to this self-appointed queen of gossip and princess of fashion. _Okay. I'll just go to the point where you won't move, all right? _Just…do it. Quick. _Uh-oh. _Uh-oh? What do you mean? 

Helga was still in control of her body, but her rage was about to take over soon. Until…

"Hey, Rhonda. About what you asked Helga earlier, you know, about the whole walking home thing, it was already planned. Thanks for reminding me. Oh, and Phoebe and Gerald will be walking with us.""

Two voices, one female and one male, said this in unison: "We are?" Two of female origin said, "It was?"

Arnold nodded slowly and said, "Oh, and another thing. Wait, or two." He looked at Rhonda. "Maybe it isn't bad news on my part, and Helga, you still didn't answer my friend's question."

Helga nodded slowly. She knew who this 'friend' was. Also, seeing Arnold respond like that calmed her slightly, and seeing the look of amazement and shock on Rhonda's face for being out-talked…sort of.

A finger went up and a mouth dropped in preparation to speak. Rhonda walked up to Arnold and said, "Arnold, I don't know what caused you to do this, but I have an idea. Helga put you up to this, didn't she? She'll beat you up if you don't pretend, won't she?"

Arnold opened his mouth and shrugged. Then he said, "Who said I was pretending? I like her like her." His gaze turned to those standing in the circle around them. "All of you think it is so bad that I like Helga, but you never mess with Phoebe for being her best friend. Phoebe and I see the same thing that none of you see. It's because that you never even tried. Why not? You all got to know other people, so why is she any different? I know why, but I can't say." He glanced over at the girl still standing totally motionless, except for her chest and eyes moving. "It's up to her whether or not she can let it out."

Helga mouthed, very slowly, mind you, because people were still looking at the three of them, "I'm not ready". Arnold understood. Of course, it was only a week since she told him.

Rhonda leaned back slightly in a huff and brought up another subject. "Arnold, you saved the neighborhood. I would think that after that, you would want better than Helga. Especially since her dad was in on the act."

Helga didn't move a muscle.

Arnold tipped his head, but someone else beat him to the punch.

"We wouldn't have gone anywhere without Helga, Rhonda."

Helga finally moved. She looked at Gerald and shook her head quickly. "Gerald, no, don't say anything. You've done enough already."

Gerald looked like he was about to say something, but instead he said, "I'll talk to you later. Rhonda, you have no idea what went on back then, so don't accuse anyone, okay? Cool. It's settled." 

Rhonda turned on her heel and began to leave. "Come on, Lila. We have to get to class."

Instead of following her close friend, Lila stayed put. Rhonda turned around and repeated, "Lila, Come on. We've wasted enough time with these brainwashed geeks."

Lila looked down at the ground and bit her lip. Then, she walked over quietly to Helga and whispered something in her ear. Oh, Helga was about to go mental from all of this, but instead, her arms fell limp and her mouthed dropped in awe. She whispered hoarsely something back, Lila smiled, and she walked on. After the excitement had left, the crowd moved on, some muttering and gossiping about how Rhonda might be right.

Arnold, Phoebe, and soon after, Gerald, walked over to the motionless and surprised Helga. "Helga," said Phoebe, "what did she say to you?"

Arnold shook his head. "I can't believe I ever liked her."

Gerald said quietly, "Come on, girl, what did she say?"

Helga finally choked out these words: "Arnold, I guess I was wrong about Lila…mostly. A little. She just told me 'I'm ever so happy you got what you wanted. Good luck.'"

_BRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!!  _(A/N: Well, the in between period couldn't last forever, too.)

The four of them quickly ran in different directions to their lockers.

I just saw Holes, the best book/movie in the world! Oh, V-Day II and Through the CD are at my dad's computer, and I need to go there next weekend to get them uploaded. Sorry, don't hurt me! Oh, and, well, if anybody wants to be important (well, at least have a chance of getting a free plot and story, free of charge, and/or quicker updates), then check out the last chappie of "Hillwood Meets Chloe". There, you will find an equally IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE!!!!!! It has to do with that story and another story, Time to Switch. Well, until then, I wish you peace for you, your family, and our country.

~~Briana Luvs Foot Ball Head


	14. Stories over the Phoneline

Explanations

EVERYBODY, LISTEN UP!!!!!!!!! Uh, due to a slight document mix-up, I put an unfinished chapter up as chapter sixteen. (Thanks, Serap and Arnoldfan) So, I've not only posted the rest of it, but I added some things to the fight and made a small adjustment to the first paragraph and other places, as well, so just read the whole thing over. I think it's better than the original. So, anyway, the usual blah, blah, blah of disclaimers, okay, let's do this already!

Helga walked slowly home from Arnold's house. She passed two stopped buses on the way, but she wanted to speak with Connie and think about what had been going on just minutes ago. Well, Connie, when should I kiss him, then? _I don't know! All I know is that you had the perfect opportunity right there! I've been in a few other people's brains before, okay? I know my way around._ Well, then, explain why you want me to kiss him so badly and so soon? _Because, because... Oh, I wish I could tell you, but I can't. There are strict rules on that_. Is there like, a guild or something for you consciences? _Something similar to that, yeah_. Oh, criminy. _Only now I'm having second thoughts… _Whatever. 

Helga sighed when she realized that she had only two houses until she reached her house. She didn't want to here Bob yelling at her and Miriam trying to get him to calm down, half-way agree with him the whole time, and then begin snoring on the couch. Of course, there was no way to escape…since Bob was standing by the door, not the least bit worried, but rather angry.

"Where have you been, little missy? School ending two hours ago! And I know there wasn't a stupid baseball game today, so don't try that with me, girl."

"Honey, where were you this whole time? B, calm down, okay?"

Helga rolled her eyes. Great, just as she thought. Is that how often this happened? "Bob, I was walking home with some friends, okay? The live a couple of blocks away! Can I just go to my room, now?"

"Ooh, no, girl. I want to know what was so important that you almost missed dinner, and I want to know that NOW!" He hit his fist into his hand, very, very, hard.

"What?"

Helga sighed. "Bob, is it such a freaking big deal that I walked home with Phoebe?"

__

Ring, ring.

Bob stomped to the phone and yelled, "WAIT A MINUTE!"

"But I…"

He set the phone onto the counter and walked over toward his daughter again, who wasn't so far away. "Listen here, girl, I know there is something that you are not telling me, okay? That little Asian girl Fifi doesn't live that far away!"

Helga rolled her eyes. "It's Phoebe. Fine, I walked home with Gerald and Arnold, too, okay?"

Bob crossed his arms and thought on that for a minute. "Are you talking about that Arnold who saved the neighborhood from Scheck the other day?"

It seemed like Bob was calmed down now, so Helga said, "Yeah, we're friends now."

Unfortunately, that really didn't help her case one bit. "I don't want you messing with that kid, or his little friend, okay? They don't have an eye for cooperate development and risked their butts for something that wouldn't really matter, anyway."

Helga felt like yelling, 'You almost lost half of your business, but Arnold saved it for your stupid, cooperate development self!' She thought better of it (slightly), and said, "Bob, we were just having fun, okay? They're my friends, I have a right to…"

"Oh, just having fun, huh? What about your homework? Olga would never do something like this! She would come straight home, forget about walking with friends or baseball games, and do her part of the house."

Helga felt like saying, "Which is being a spoiled brat and annoying perfect girl." Her anger was more protruding that thaht, however, so she yelled, "Well, I'm no Olga, even though whenever you speak to me, you think that I am! That's all you care about is 'Olga would never', 'Olga could do it just like that', or 'Olga never acted like that, she was always the best kid in the universe and our other daughter is just second place!' You don't even know my real name, Bob! You always just call me 'girl', 'missy', or even worse, 'OLGA'! All I freaking am is a comparison to how good Olga is and how horrible and ignorant I am, aren't I? I'm not even a member of the family, just a rejected, nonfunctional beeper!" 

Bob was furious. "Olga, you do not speak to your father like that!"

"There you go again! You said Olga! That is not my name, and I'm glad it isn't!"

"Go into your room! You won't be having dinner!"

"Oh, that's just fine with me! Ignore me; act like I'm not even here so you can go on with your great and hailed life as the Beeper King over all other people and me. I don't care!"

Apparently, Bob didn't care either. He just walked into the living room and started watching wrestling. Helga screamed in annoyance and ran up to her room and slammed the door shut.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold stared at the phone as if it would crumble in his fingers at any given moment. His eyes were wide. Not everything may have been said, but he could tell from everything that had just gone on what Helga's home life was like. He always just thought that Helga exaggerated about her family and that the thing with Olga was just something called sibling rivalry, but it was really a rivalry for her to be noticed, too. Right now, he really understood another reason why Helga wouldn't ever show her true brilliance. Her father acting like that was cruel.

The pit of Arnold's stomach surged as he tried to imagine it all. "Why? Why does Helga have to have a home like that?"

Slowly, after staring at the receiver and not hearing anyone hang up the phone, he hung up. He sat back in his chair and sighed. Connor, what am I feeling right now? I need to know. _Uh, let's see here…pity? No, it's not that…are you sorry for her? No, that isn't it. Um…is it anger? Uh-uh, not really. Do you wish Helga had better parents? Close, but that isn't everything…okay, this is confusing. Maybe it's a little bit of all of that. Yeah, but it isn't pity you're feeling. I don't know. It isn't a feeling, it's more like a thought…Oh, I know! You don't think Helga deserves this! You think she deserves better than what she's getting, and that her parents are great big bags of poo. _Yeah, I do believe that is it.

He opened the door and leaned against it. She doesn't need people like that to live with! They need to treat Helga better than they presently are. Only, how can we help her? _I don't rightly know. Maybe you could comfort her next time you see her tomorrow._

"Hey! Whoa!"

The next thing that was heard was a great, loud THUMP, then a moan of slight pain. Something had fallen on Arnold's bed and then rolled to the floor.

__

Or maybe now.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga shook her head and grabbed her knee. It was a good thing Arnold was in here when she fell, though.

"Uh, Helga, what are you doing I my room?"

Oops. Yeah, you can't see the door from that part of the window, remember? Well, now I know that!

She rolled over and guiltily smiled. Arnold had just seen the whole thing. "Uh, hey, Arnold, how's it going?" She bent a knee and rested her hand on her head. "Um, I was just in the neighborhood, and, uh…"

Arnold lowered his eyelids and crossed his arms. "Helga, what's wrong? There had to be a reason why you just fell through my ceiling."

"If only you knew how many times I've done that," she mumbled.

"What?"

"Oh! Uh, nothing, nothing at all!"

Arnold walked over to his bed and sat down, never taking his eyes off of her. _Come on, man, say something!_ I'm not going to bring it up…she has to say something first. _Good idea…but what will you do after that?_ Not everything needs a plan, Connor. _Right. Good boy_.

Helga sat Indian style on the floor and fiddled with her fingers, trying to avoid what she had come here for. Why don't you say something? He has no idea what went on…what always goes on. Come on, just say that you had an argument with your dad and that someone was on the phone the whole time and you're worried whoever was on the phone will tell people.

She sighed. Okay, I'll do this. "Uh, Arnold, the reason I came over here is because me and my dad had this big fight when I came home."

Arnold leaned back and made an O shape with his mouth. See?

"And, uh, someone called early in it and my dad didn't hang up. I started yelling a whole bunch of stuff at him, and whoever was on the phone heard everything!"

Uh, Connor? Yeah, whatever, wait, though.

"I know that whoever called knows us, and if it was one of the kids from school, then I'll just die, do you know why?" By this point she was on her feet and pacing back and forth in distress. "Because then that person will tell everybody in the school about that, then they'll have something else to print in the papers, and I'll either be gossiped on even MORE, or I'll be pitied, and I hate pity!"

You better be glad it wasn't pity you were feeling earlier. Connor? Shut up.

"Helga, Helga, calm down!" Arnold finally spoke. He stood up and put his hands on her shoulders to keep her still. "I don't know if this will make things any better, but I was the one who called you, okay?"

Instead of her calming down, she broke away from him. Her eyes grew wide as she looked at him in shock. She started shaking her head slowly. _Um, Helga? _He can't know that, he can't know that! He pities me! I just know it! Oh, this is terrible! _HELGA G. PATAKI! Look at him!_

She did as she was told, and on the face of the person in front of her wasn't a look of apology or pity, but one of knowing and understanding. He took a deep breath and said, "Helga, please, calm down. I don't pity you, okay? What your parents are doing to you is wrong, but I don't think they realize it." On his face was a look of sincerity and genuineness. There was also a look of slight boldness. Helga saw this and smiled. No, Arnold would never take pity on anyone, would he? Well, better him then anyone else.

Then Helga shook her head and her mood changed. "Arnold, it doesn't matter if they know or not, okay? Parents are supposed to care for their children, not just one child! If you lived with them every single day then you would know why I said those things! It's so stressful! Yeah, sometimes they act parent-like, but in a day or so it's all dirt under the blanket! Even after my mom gave that speech after I tried to tell her to quit work (remember that?) the buzz of it stopped after about two weeks."

"Helga, I realize that, okay? They're wrong for treating you like that, okay? You deserve much better! . But tell me, what did your mom do after she told your dad to calm down?"

Helga crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. "Tsk, she stood there for a while, but then she got tired and fell asleep on the couch."

Arnold sat down on his bed and after a moment of silence, Helga sat down next to him.

Arnold kept looking at the floor between his legs with his hands cupped together. "Helga, you know that you really do deserve better than them, right?"

"Yeah, but if I did then why do they treat me like crud most of the time?"

"Most of the time?"

"Yeah, sometimes they care about me and act like real parents, but it lasts for, like, a day. Remember Thanksgiving?"

Arnold looked up at the ceiling as he remembered that day. They both had run from their families that day for different reasons, and Helga's was because her family kept drooling over Olga. When he walked her home, though, her family was completely hysterical about the missing Helga.

"Yeah, I do."

"Well, that lasted until the next afternoon. Then all the spotlight was turned toward the shining star off the family!"

Arnold looked back up to the ceiling. Should I bring it up? _Hey, this is your personal life, okay? Go for it._

Helga was looking at Arnold funny. "Arnold, why do you keep looking at the ceiling

or at the floor?"

"Uh, just talking with Connor."

"Who?"

He sighed. "Like Connie."

"Oh."

"Hey, uh, Helga?"

"Yes?"

He took a deep inhale and exhale. "Um, since I know so much, you know, about your, uh, parents and stuff, and since to everybody else," he looked up at Helga's face, "…we're a couple, I think that I ought to, um, tell you about…"

Helga was speechless. She completely forgot about the fact that Arnold's parents didn't live here. Wait. He was going to tell her about them? She'd be the first person to know the story? Well, maybe except Gerald, but… Still, she kept saying 'stupid, stupid, stupid' inside her head. _Aw, you're not that stupid. It just reminded him of it._ Connie? Shut up.

"Yeah, okay, Arnold," said Helga shakily. "If you want to, I mean, nobody is making you…"

"No," he replied. "I want to."

(A/N: After this, there was absolutely nothing. Everything after this is crucial. **And there's a sweet moment! Ooh!** Phebga! It took me a while to remember what I had here, so, uh, okay!)

And so Arnold began telling Helga about the stories his grandfather told him about his parents' adventures in Central and South America. He told her of how they had met, of plane flights, explorations of rainforests, and even a few mishaps that they had to get themselves out of. He finally told of why they had to leave him on that fateful day, to save a tribe of natives from a deadly disease.

Once Arnold had finished, Helga was lying face-up on the bed with her hands folded on her stomach, looking through the skylight, and he was leaning against the wall where the couch usually was with his hands crossed over his chest, looking down. Helga broke the silence with a dreamy sigh. "Wow," she breathed, "that's an amazing story. Well…" She thought about what she'd said. "I mean, most of it was, but, I, err, you know…"

Arnold looked up from the ground to look at Helga, who was now leaning on her elbow looking at Arnold apologetically. He nodded in understanding. "Yeah," he said. "The ending isn't as good huh?"

Straightening his position, he began wandering around the room, rubbing his hands over things he passed a though seeing them for the first time. "Even so," he said, "I've always wanted to do what they did. You know, explore through the rainforests, do scientific experiments, and have all sorts of adventures. I daydream about it a lot."

Sighing once again, Helga said, "That's a really good dream, Arnold. I guess that I kind of want to do something like that. It'd be some superb stuff to write about."

Arnold glanced up and looked at Helga. "I didn't know you liked to write."

"Tsk, are you kidding?" She smiled. "I want to be an author or poet when I get older, and something like what you were talking about would have been some great material. I really wish I could what you want to do."

Arnold looked down at his feet as an unusual knot tied into his stomach. "If I did," he began, unsure of himself, "wouldn't you want to go with me?"

__

Just to let you know, Arnold, if I had lips I'd be smiling. Where the heck did that come from, though? What do you think?

Ooh, did he just…? _Yeah, and he meant it, I can tell you that much_.

Trying to hide her giddy, fantastical smile, she stuttered, "Well, uh, I mean, yeah, I guess I would, I mean, if you wanted me to, I would. Heh, heh." This is so wonderful! I escaped from my prison of a home to hear Arnold say that…to me! _I'm, uh, really happy for you! _Hey…what's wrong? _Nothing! My job to help you is almost done… Hey, by the way, what time is it? _Don't ruin the moment, Connie! _Look, you do have school tomorrow_. Yeah, I know…Oh, shoot!

"Arnold…"

"Helga, you…"

Both stood in front of each other, staring.

"The time?" asked Helga.

"Uh-huh."

Helga groaned and cocked her head back. "Oh, it's past nine thirty! My parents are going to kill me after that little number you heard on the phone! I don't wanna go back home, anyway! And I really can't go to Phoebe's because her mom likes to make arrangements…what am I going to do?!?!"

__

Oh, boy. You best do something now. Uh, okay.

__

CALM DOWN! Connie, you know exactly why I'm upset! _Yeah, but still, try to tone it down. You're getting a tad over-dramatic._ Trying…to…be…

"Helga!"

"WHAT!?"

Holding out his arms to calm her down and in no way phased by her scream, Arnold said comfortingly, "Helga, you know where you are right now?"

"Yeah, I'm in your room…oh, wait. Arnold, you can't be suggesting…"

Arnold nodded. "You can stay here, in an extra room in the boarding house. Just call your house to get some clothes, ask my grandpa, and you can stay."

Crossing her arms, obviously out of her extreme worry stage, she stated blandly, "First, my parents will never allow me to stay here, nevertheless allow me to go home and leave again without yelling at me. Second, your grandpa will never let me stay in an extra room without paying."

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Of course we'll let you stay in one of our extra rooms! To top it of, we won't have you pay a rental fee. Let me tell you, barely anyone here does, and when they do, it's rarely on time."

Glancing over to the dumbfounded Helga, Arnold smirked in his small victory.

"Uh, thanks," she said, for some reason uncertain. Hmm, perhaps it was because she was spending the night in the boarding house outside of a closet or the small space behind the couch. She felt awkward.

Arnold's grandpa pointed at Arnold and said, "Arnold, you can show her to her room, I have to go into my office for just a second. Oh, that dab nab it raspberry pie and watermelon."

When Grandpa had opened the door down the hall and closed it, Helga turned to Arnold. "What was that about?"

Arnold shrugged. "I think he's allergic to raspberries or something. They never bother me." He looked like he was about to walk to the room, when he stopped short and said, "Helga, shouldn't you at least call your parents and tell them where you are? You know, so that they won't be, uh, too angry."

Nodding, Helga walked over to the phone. She lifted it leisurely and dialed her home phone number. Oh, please don't yell, oh please, don't yell, oh, please, don't…

"Uh, Hello?"

"YES!"

"Huh?"

"Oh, never mind. Miriam, it's me, Helga."

"Oh, hi, honey. Um, what are you doing?"

"I'm at…uh, I'm at Phoebe's house." Helga looked over at Arnold, who showed a hint of a scowl and a lot of confusion. "Yeah, I decided to spend the night over here."

"Okay, then. That's nice."

"I was just telling you so that Bob didn't blow a gas pipe again."

"Okay, then. Bye-bye, Helga."

"See you."

Seeing that Helga hung up the phone, Arnold walked up to her. "Why did you tell her that you were staying at Phoebe's house?"

Helga rolled her eyes at the obvious…well, at least to her, since she thought of it. "Because," she said as-a-matter-of-factly, "My dad's okay with Phoebe, but for some reason, his mood changed about the FTi thing and he doesn't like you again. Plus, do you really think that my dad would let me spend the night at ANY boy's house? Besides, I have one more place to go before I can stay here."

Turning her back towards Arnold, she dialed another number. She paused and waited for it to ring.

"Hello, this is the Hyerdhal…"

"Phoebe! It's Helga!"

"Oh, hello, Helga. What do you…"

"Listen, Pheebs, um, can you find the duffel bag that I accidentally left at your house and put it on your front porch?"

"You mean the bag that you keep here…I mean the bag you left at my house last time you slept over?"

"That's the one."

"Well, why do you require it?"

"Because I…I just need to use it, okay?"

"Well, all right, Helga. It'll be on my front porch."

"Thanks, Pheebs! You're a lifesaver!"

"Not at all, Helga."

"See Ya, Phoebe."

"Adieu, Helga."

The receiver was placed back onto the phone and Helga looked around at Arnold, who still had about the same expression on with his arms crossed. "You lied to her, too?" he said.

"I didn't lie, Arnold, I just didn't tell her why I needed clothes, okay?"

She speed walked toward the staircase backwards, still talking to Arnold. "I gotta go to Phoebe's house, okay? I'll be back before you can name all of the wrestlers in the Wrestle Mania Federation. 'Bye!"

Arnold uncrossed his arms and gave a short wave to Helga. "'Bye."

Helga turned around and went down the stairs quickly. When he heard the door downstairs open and close, he turned around and headed back up the stairs to his bedroom.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

This is GREAT! _Yeah, it is. You told Arnold about some of the problems in your life, and he told you his._ That means he trusts me! That means he really, really, really like-likes me! And he invited me to stay in his house!

Helga made an attempt to squeal through her excessive panting, but it didn't necessarily work. She was smiling while running frantically toward Phoebe's house, her dress hitting against her legs in the warm, late summer night wind.

She turned around a corner, still sprinting, and could see her best friend's house just a few yards down. When she was able to see the stoop, she saw her duffel bag sitting on the cement barrier next to the steps. Sitting above it, however, was…

"Phoebe? Why are you sitting out here?"

Indeed, apparently Phoebe had wondered why her friend requested her clothes this late at night. Sitting out here, she noticed something else. "Helga, the better question is why you came from that direction," she pointed at the path Helga had come from on her right, "when your house is in the other." She pointed to her right.

Whatcha gonna say, Helga? I'm in a hurry, I'll tell her tomorrow or something. "Listen, Pheebs, I'm in kind of a rush, so I'll explain tomorrow, okay?"

Staring at Helga, Phoebe nodded in agreement slowly. "By all means, Helga. I was just curious as to the fact that you aren't home. Which is kind of a big deal, right?"

"You wouldn't believe," muttered Helga. Louder, she said, "Yeah, that's right." She walked up to her bag and took it from its perch. "Anyway, Good night. See you tomorrow."

"Good night to you, also, Helga."

Phoebe watched as Helga turned around and started walking in the other way. She decided that she'd rather walk back to Arnold's house. She got the Phoebe's in record time, so she figured she had time to spare. After all, there were more than a few people who were members of the Wrestle Mania Federation.

Well, there's the ending (at least to this chapter). Hope you guys liked it. Now you can either finish reading the rest if this is your first time reading it, or wait patiently for the next chapter of Explanations! Oh, and just for the record, check out my other stories, like Through the Compact Disc, Valentine's Day II, and others. Until then, I'm out! And I've been forgetting quotes, so here it is:

"Did I mention dramatic irony bites like a rabid monkey?" -Tino Tonitini, very well spoken

Briana LFBH 


	15. Lila and the Walk

Explanations 

Anyway, here it is. All of you guys really liked that last one, and, well, thanks a bunch. I think I've already hit 50 with this one…COOL!!!! No, wait, two to go, but still! I'll be updating the other ones soon. I'm going places with Through the Compact Disc; I'm just trying to get it just right. Time to Switch, I need to work on, and ASG, well, soon, okay?

Serap-89: Well, thanks for sticking with the story this whole time! Oh, and your welcome, too. Hope you like how this one turns out! Which. Well, may…

Puppies Cute: Well, as you can see, I all ready have, only for some reason, my computer won't show me anything except what's been updated before 4-27! Yeah, I thought people would enjoy the part where he said that, and Rhonda is quite annoying sometimes, I agree.

Helgagurl46: Oh, you think it's cute? Thankies! This one is probably even cuter! I didn't know while I was typing it, but it formed on its own!

So. Certain people are making me say a certain thing that means I don't own a certain carton that this certain story is about. And you know what? It is certainly true.

Lila Soya was sitting patiently in her chair, listening attentively to Mr. Packenham's lecture on the solar system in science class. Just a few minutes ago she had said something that Rhonda would have surely wrung her neck for, but she felt that she had to do it.

Lila always had this feeling that Helga didn't really like her. One of the clues was the fact that she knew Helga's secret, and Arnold had always been falling over her. She remembered that day, because it proved that Helga didn't hate her for no reason.

**It was two days before the school's production of Romeo and Juliet. (**A/N: I wrote down the dialogue somewhere and I lost it! So, you'll have to settle with paraphrasing**.) Helga had come over to her house and began naming of all sorts of different reasons that would possibly cause Lila to drop out of the part of Juliet.**

**"Look, Lila," she had said. **(I remember that part!)** "I have to play Juliet!"**

**Lila asked why.**

**"Because I just do!"**

**"Well, if you don't have a good reason…"**

(A/N: Just totally forget that part about forgetting…)

**"I have a good reason, I just can't tell you what it is!" Helga turned her back to Lila in defiance.**

**She looked down to the ground, thinking, and her eyes popped open in realization. "It isn't by any chance because you like Arnold, is it?"**

**Helga turned slowly around. "What?"**

**She said that if that were the reason, and because she wanted to kiss Arnold, since he was playing Romeo, then she'd gladly give the part…**

**"You mean, that if I said that I liked Arnold…uh, talk about a crazy idea…then, you'd let me play the part?"**

**"Yeah, but you don't, so…"**

**"Whoa, wait a minute."**

**Lila smiled. "Yes, Helga?" Some may consider her prep, but she wasn't stupid.**

**Helga made Lila swear not to tell anyone that she liked Arnold. Well, "hypothetically, of course."**

**Finally, Helga gave in. She mumbled something.**

**"Pardon?" asked Lila.**

**She mumbled again.**

**"I'm sorry, Helga, you're mumbling."**

**This is where she exploded. "I! LIKE! ARNOLD!"**

**Helga began to yell very fast, now. She was rambling about how much she loved, not liked, Arnold. Lila was actually amused by this, but not in that bad way.**

**"I kinda had a funny feeling that you liked him." Lila smiled brightly.**

**"So, you'll let me have the part?" asked Helga desperately.**

**"Of course."**

**"Thanks!"**

 Lila giggled slightly at the thought of that day. That was the entire reason why she told Helga what she had. She really was happy for her.

But there was another reason why she was dancing of joy inside.

No more Arnold pestering her! Sure, she liked him, but now he wouldn't be asking her out a hundred times this year! YAY!

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

The door to Mr. Packenham's room creaked open slowly. "Arnold, Phoebe, Gerald, Helga, the first day of school and you are already five minutes late? Almost everyone in here was, too."

The four of them looked at each other. They knew exactly why that was so.

Gerald was thinking about the entire day. In a way it was extremely funny. It was like if someone was watching this one television or reading it from a book, they would either be saying "Oh, that's so sweet" or "Why did that have to happen like that" or "Oh, man, that was funny".

Of course he would never know.

He walked over to his chair and sat down at his desk and absent-mindedly listening to Packenham. Actually, he thought that it was all of the above. The current thing between Arnold and Helga, not Packenham's lecture. He seriously never thought any of this could possibly happen, but you knew that, didn't you? Well, now that it actually happened, it didn't seem as weird. I mean Helga is actually standing up for Arnold, right? And Arnold isn't acting like he usually does whenever he likes a girl, right? He's acting serious, like he knows what he's doing. These were all of the good things about the two together, and there were probably more.

This meant only one thing that personally concerned him.

Silently, the two of them, meaning Helga and him, made an unofficial, but still meaning something, truce. Actually, the only reason she never really liked her was because of the whole Arnold thing. Helga didn't really seem as bad as she had been last year. In fact it almost seems as if there were someone training her, or at least keeping you down. Helga actually seemed cool, now.

Oh, wait. Somebody was keeping her down. Now he remembered.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_You better be glad I've been calming you down for the last five hours. Man, it feels like I'm training you or something! _Yeah, maybe I should just call you Sergeant Connie Conscience from now on, eh? _That would be really cool. _Seriously, Connie, do you think that I would do that? Criminy. _Hey. Be nice to me while you can, okay? _Fine, okay? Jeez, when will you be gone, anyway? _In a few days. Why, do you want me gone? _No, but, hey, you'll still be here, right? _Yeah, that's true._

"Miss. Pataki, do you know the answer?"

"What? Huh?"

Mr. Packenham was standing bent over above Helga's desk. Apparently, he had just asked her a question that she'd missed.

She bit her lip. "Um, could you tell me the question again, Mr. P?" 

Rhonda rolled her eyes and sighed. Did she really have to say it?

She didn't. 

Harold did, though.

"Ah, ha-ha! She was probably thinking about Ar-nuld!" About half of the class laughed aloud, a quarter smirked, and the rest kept quiet. Well, except…

"Shut-up, Pink Boy, before I make your name Pink Nose!" Helga was turned around in her seat and raising Old Betsy in his direction.

Sid pointed at her mockingly, "Hey, Harold, she can't do anything! If she does, Arnold won't like her anymore!" That caused even more of a roar.

Arnold and Helga sunk down in their seats and blushed furiously…literally. They were both mad at everyone except Gerald, Phoebe, and maybe Lila. Why couldn't anyone just let them be?

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Phoebe watched helplessly as two of her best friends were publicly humiliated again. This was the fourth time! Wasn't that enough to get this immature action out of their systems? Apparently, it was not.

Phoebe knew that the two belonged together, for not only was it totally obvious to someone who bothered to look, but she had also learned it from an ancient Oriental legend of Ying-Yang. (If anybody read Hillwood Meets Chloe, yeah, I used that again. So what?) The two of them balanced each other out perfectly, and you could even see the results now. There was now a perfect circle in the children's midst.

Of course, she didn't say any of this out loud. She wanted to, but she couldn't bring herself up to it. Heck, she didn't even know why she marched up to Gerald's room that one day. She just knew that the people who took the relationship as a really big mistake were completely and entirely wrong.

What was she supposed to do?

!@#$%^&*&()_+{}:"?

"All right, now, settle down, class! I'm being easy on you today since school just began. Leave your social lives in the hallway, and be quiet!"

Arnold let out a sigh of relief. He was beginning to wonder when the teacher would rescue them. He was also wondering when he would loose his cool and stand up and walk out of the classroom. Of course that wasn't like him, but haven't you been listening?

Connor, you said that someday soon you'd have to go back to behind-the-scenes work, right? _Yeah, and that will be in a few days, okay? Don't worry, buddy, I won't be leaving you! _I know that. It's just that I'll miss you. Okay, that was kind of corny, eh? _Very, but thanks anyway. _

Mr. Packenham returned to his talk about space and the class continued to take their half-hearted notes.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

2 hours and 15 minutes later…

Helga was standing outside with her backpack over her shoulder, waiting. She was out in the open, where anyone could push her to extremes, but she wasn't going to avoid it anymore. If she did, it would just get way too annoying for her. Besides, even if everyone in the school was laughing at her and disgracing her, she was still Helga Geraldine Pataki, okay? And Helga G. Pataki never backed down under pressure.

Well, she never had this much pressure on her, so how would she know? She did anyway…with just a tiny bit of reassurance from Connie. Hey, she came up with the idea, anyway!

She bit her lip and started bouncing on her toes a little bit in impatience. She looked above her head and saw a few gray clouds gather overhead. Was rain coming? If it did, then that would just be a perfect sign…

"Hey, Helga."

Helga turned around and smiled. In her eyes was Phoebe and Gerald.

And, of course, Arnold.

"Hey, guys. Ready to walk home?"

Translation: "I was wondering if you were going to get here or not."

Arnold smiled in agreement. "Yeah. That's what we're here for."

Translation: "Of course I was. What did you think?"

Gerald and Phoebe smiled brightly. They knew exactly what they were saying.

Gerald had accepted and understood. Would the other kids do that soon, or would the four of them be put into social exile?

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Well, I still think Helga blackmailed them to do this. We all know she really likes him, but I still don't believe Arnold could possibly like-like Helga!"

"Rhonda, come on. I think it's just ever-so romantic. If you think about it, I'm sure its possible. I mean, we've barely seen the two since the neighborhood was saved, right?"

"Lila, are you seriously sticking up for them? Arnold is supposed to like-like you!"

"You know that I don't like him like him, I just like him. Actually, I think the two make a good couple."

"Hey!" announced Sid. "Look over there!"

Everyone on the bus turned to look at the front of the school. They saw four backs, two blue, one red, and another pink, turning and beginning to walk in their direction.

Rhonda sat back and smiled. She was wondering when they would walk onto the bus. She had to convince Arnold that the relationship was so totally wrong.

Unfortunately, Sid just said, "They aren't…getting…on. Boy howdy, what's going on with those four?"

Rhonda shot up and looked out the window. Soon, Lila and Nadine, along with everyone else's faces were looking out the windows.

It was true! The four were walking right past the bus. Before their faces were out of looking range, though, Arnold looked at Helga while she was speaking to Phoebe and smiled. A _real, _not forced or pretending, smile. A thoughtful, caring, understanding smile. In Rhonda's eyes, it was impossible, but in Lila, Nadine, and even Sid's minds, that was all the proof they needed.

Maybe it would be hard for some who even realized, much less those like Rhonda and Harold, to seriously accept it, but at least they knew know that what was between the two was opposite of Rhonda's theory.

Rhonda, Harold, and one other person, wouldn't let this opportunity to put things back the way they were pass.

The bus started up and drove on, passing the quartet, and letting the kids on the bus see once again the four kids laughing and smiling and talking and most importantly, being friends.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"/

Twenty minutes later…

Gerald and Phoebe's house were reached first, and the four, then three, said their good-byes at those stops.

Next up was Arnold's house.

The two walked up the sidewalk talking and making jokes about their embarrassment that day, barely noticing the fact that the Sunset Arms was nearing them every second.

Finally, the two looked up at the building and then back at each other's eyes. They both looked down quickly. While walking up toward the stairs, and then the door, Arnold was having an argument in his head.

I know what usually happens now, Connor, but I don't think I can! _You don't have to, Arnold, but it wouldn't matter to her if it were now or later!_

Helga was, too.

_It's not that big of a deal, okay? He like-likes you, right? _Yeah, but still, I've been thinking about this day for years! I don't know if I should do it or not!

The two looked up at each other again and looked confused, as if wondering what do to. Before either of them could do anything, though, disaster struck.

The door opened, with a little help from Oscar Kokashka.

"Whoa!"

"Ya!"

Pretty soon, the two were laying on their backsides with cat hair all over their clothes and listening to barks, meows, and oinks run down the sidewalk.

Oscar looked at the two on the ground and closed the door, slightly embarrassed. "Eh, heh, heh, heh." 

It was perfect, wasn't it?

The two sat up quickly and had looks of shock and fright on their faces. Every single one of Arnold's pets had just trampled the two who were _about _to do something.

Arnold stood up first and looked down at Helga. She was picking hair off of her dress. He held out his and smiled. "Sorry. I guess I should have remembered that."

"Criminy, whatever, Football Head." She looked up at Arnold's apologetic face and started laughing. Coincidently, she fell on her back in hysteria. "Arnold. Don't look at me that way! What just happened is funny enough!"

He smiled even wider and soon joined Helga in her laughter and also fell to the ground. It was true; getting trampled by cats, dogs, and a pig was actually kind of funny.

_Ah, whatever! _

_So, what? Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!_

_Ha, ha, ha!_

Arnold finally calmed down and looked at Helga, who was staring at the sky and smiling widely, as if she had found the silver lining in her day. Arnold grinned and looked at the sky, too. Then he saw what exactly was captivating her so much.

Above them in the white, fluffy clouds of the late afternoon was what looked like a large hat with a great figure that had an uncanny resemblance to a bow next to it. Off to the right was something that looked like a girl laughing a loud, yet peaceful looking laugh.

Together, two consciences hung back in their hosts' minds and thought, _perfect. What could possibly be better?_

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga realized where she was and looked to her right. She was happy, but at the same time, she felt like this wasn't the right time. She jumped up and looked around distressed. Arnold sat up and looked at her funny.

Helga thought up an alibi. "I, uh, I have to, um, get home, Arnold. Bob will kill me if I'm not back, and you know how far away my house is. I've got to go now."

Arnold stood up and said, "Yeah, good point. I've got to get inside and eat dinner before it's all gone."

There was an awkward moment between the two as both Connie and Connor screamed, "_What the heck are you doing?!?!" _

Helga grabbed her elbow and rubbed her arm slowly. "I, uh, thanks for walking me home, Arnold. I mean, the four of us, you know, it was fun."

Arnold rubbed his neck as he slowly walked backwards up the stairs again. "Yeah, uh, I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

Helga nodded. "Um, okay, then. I just hope it's on, uh, better circumstances."

"Yeah, me, too."

"Uh, see ya."

"Bye, Helga."

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold closed the door and Connie took over.

"Agh, why did you do that? I mean why didn't you do what you were going to do?!?!"

 _Look, Connie, I was going to, but the flock of animals kind of ruined the moment!_

"There was another freaking moment right after that, Helga! Oh!" Connie started jumping up and down in frustration. She practically slapped Helga's cheek for her.

For different reasons, Helga did that to Connie.

"Ouch!" said two people at once. "Helga, why did you do that?" _Uh, because people live on this block and because you were GOING INSANE!!! Heck, I have already kissed him, okay? _"Yeah, but I bet this was the first time he wanted to kiss you back!" _Do you think? _"I could tell, Helga. His conscience was talking to him, that's how I knew." _Great, now I'm  even madder at myself._

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

_Arnold, you had the PERFECT opportunity! After that whole ordeal we went through, I thought you would kiss her! _Do I have to tell you why I didn't kiss her? _No. First the animals then the Helga getting up really quick thing, okay? But I know she wanted to kiss you. _Yeah, and how would you know? _She's wanted to kiss you, and has achieved three times, mind you, for a long time, remember? _Well, yeah, there is that. _And after the animals came was even more of a good chance to kiss her! She was laughing and you were right next to her! It was perfect romance! _Connor, I have forever to kiss her, okay? _Yeah, but how long will you have me to help you?_ Look, close the discussion, okay?

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Eight minutes earlier…

The window of the dinning room in the Sunset Arms was open because of the busted A.C.. Everyone was in the room during a certain event that was happening outside.

Do I have to explain what happened again?

Phil leaned back in his seat and laughed when he saw the two back away from each other. "Well, it looks like what I told Arnold was right! Woo, boy, more boy-hood troubles to go through with Arnold."

When Arnold walked into the dinning room a few minutes later, everyone acted as if there was nothing different, but Grandpa couldn't help but waddle in his own glory of being right. He sat down and said, "Sorry I'm late. I walked home with some friends from…" That's when he saw the window.

He looked up at everybody and said, "Okay, Grandpa, I know exactly what you're thinking. 'I knew that little girl with the one-eyebrow who is always picking on you liked you, Arnold.'"

Grandpa looked up and said way to innocently, "Arnold, I have no idea what you are talking about. All I know is that…" He lost his innocent tome and said, "Oscar owes me ten bucks."

Well, how did you like? I know what it looked like in the beginning of that one part, but I'm sorry, if that happened, an entire part of the story would end. I can't tell you what though.

So, did you like it? I hope you did. I didn't know where to cut it, so I decided to make it one long chappie. Did anyone like the Lila part? Tell me your thoughts on it! Please?

Briana Loves Foot Ball Head (BrianaLFBH)~~~

  


	16. Musing Talks

Explanations

Why hasn't anybody reviewed last chapter? Something HUMONGOUS happened in it! Oh, wait, if you're reading this, you read that…but review that chappie if you forgot to, okay! I'm obsessed, I know…. Is there something wrong with this site? Is it just me that has this, because I can only read stories from before April 22? Is that happening with anyone else? If I am the only one, then I'm sorry for wasting your time.

Don't own it…but I wanted the responsibility. Oh, I can taste it! Oops! Don't own that phrase, either. Craig owns it all. Oh, how I desire to be him!

Helga was practically sprinting down Vine Street with her blue duffel bag hitting her on the backside with each step she took. Huffing and puffing her way there, with about seven blocks to go, she slowed down because something came to her realization. 

Seven days! Could you believe it, Connie? Do you know how much you've helped me? Seven days and already he knows me! _I'm very happy for you, Helga, really. _Um, Connie? You are going to be okay if you have to go back to stored persona, right? _Sure. I mean, hey, it is policy of what you call our guild. Besides, if you get into any really big emotional messes again, I can come back out! _Yeah, well, in the meantime, I'm so excited! After all of this times of trying to sneak into his house to get things back, like my pink book, my locket, that answering machine tape…. _Yeah, and now he's actually invited you to his house, I know. Do you know how you are acting? It is completely unlike you. You're acting like a boy-crazy teenager! _Hey, soon it'll wear off. I mean, I'll still love Arnold, but I have to eventually get used to it. _Uh, yeah, eventually. _Shut up, Connie! 

She looked up and realized that she was only one block away from Arnold's house. Suddenly she felt a little uneasy. What exactly was she supposed to do? 

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold stood in the hallway, waiting and talking to a voice in his head. Oh, insane? No, because just as Helga had Connie, Arnold had someone too. 

_There's nothing to worry about, okay? Look, it's not like anything is going to happen! _And what if something does? Look, I want to talk to her, but earlier, well, remember what could have happened?  _If something happens? Well, uh, heh, it's funny that you'd mention that. _What? Okay, I'm guessing that since you're in my head, I'm getting what some people would call a vibe. _What, you mean like Stinky and the whole psychic thing? _Connor, why is it funny? I don't think you're so immature to think that a kiss is funny. _Not that kind of funny! It's more like a coincidental type of funny. Look, remember how I said that soon I'd have to go back into the depths of your own brain? _What? You mean that when Helga and I kiss, you go away? _Well, not in so many words, but yes._ Great, Connor thanks for making this the time that you tell me!

"Um, Arnold, are you all right there, kid?"

Arnold looked up from his shoes to see Ernie Potts standing in front of him. "Hey, Ernie. What's going on?"

Ernie smirked. "I think that it's more of what's going on with you, huh, Arnold?" He chuckled just a little bit. "Looks like it's you who's got a little sweetheart on you hands now, huh?" 

Arnold closed his eyes and sighed. "Ernie, look, I'm in a small dilemma at school, and now a new one just came up, and I'm really kind of crammed with stuff in my head, so I was wondering if you and the rest of the boarders could give me a break for a while, okay?"

Ernie got the message and left Arnold amongst his own personal thoughts. _To quote your grandfather, 'Ah, youth'. _Connor, look, Helga and me have a bunch of stuff to discuss, okay? I'll worry about this whole kiss-and-go-away thing later. 

Ding-Dong.

Arnold jumped up and looked in the little peek-hole in the door. He was a sack of nerves right now, wasn't he? 

As we all would know, it was none other than, you guessed it: Helga.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"So, Arnold…um, about that whole thing with school and stuff…. How the hack are we supposed to get everyone over there to get used to this?" 

Arnold was sitting on a chair across the room from Helga's bed, looking down at the floor (again). "I don't know. Our closest friends got used to it pretty quickly, but all of that taunting coming from Rhonda and Harold is about to drive me nuts!"

Helga sighed and flopped down on her pillow. "I know! If it weren't for Connie, I would have seriously damaged that perfect princess's face!" Helga looked up at Arnold, who was looking at her expectantly. "Hey, uh, I am still kind of tough, Arnold. Sorry."

Arnold shook his head with a smile on his face. "No, I'm sorry. That's something about you that I like." What! Did I just say that? _Look, dude, it's been bound to happen. Remember that whole deserving thing? _Oh, well, still. _Look, there's no script for this. Just go with the flow, okay? _Fine. I finally need advice from somebody.

Helga looked surprised, flustered, and suspicious. "Arnold, why do you like the tough part of me? I thought you hated that!"

Rolling his eyes and exhaling, he responded. "Helga, I don't like it when you take your toughness to total and brute force. I do wish that I could have at least some of your toughness. I mean, yeah, sure, I know, all kids have some of that, and I do, but I just want the part that gives you better judgment. I sometimes trust people I shouldn't trust, you know?"

Helga sat up and looked at Arnold. "Yeah, sometimes, but I wish I could have your niceness and advice-giving stuff."

"You want to be what you call a 'goody-two-shoes'?"

"Arnold, you help people. Sometimes it gets to that point where you go a little overboard, but I'm terrible at that kind of stuff."

"So…I guess that's why we like each other, than? Because there's stuff we've got in common and stuff that we look up to in the other."

Helga raised her eyebrow. "Okay, Arnold, that really seemed profound-ish and not dense."

"Hey, once again, I'm not always that way. Okay, sometimes, yeah, but still." 

"Okay, Arnold. We've gone way off the subject here. Again I say: What are we going to do about the school problem?"

Arnold sighed and stood up, walking around the room. He really wished he knew. "Helga, how many times must we talk about this? There's no possible way we can _make _them accept. After a while, it has to die down and everybody will cut it out. In the mean-time, oh, wait, has Connie told you about what happens if we, um, uh, kiss?"

Helga leaned back and widened her eyes. She didn't expect that to come out of his mouth. She blinked and said, "Uh, yeah, she did. Bummer, huh?" She stood up and sauntered her way over to Arnold. "But, hey, look at the bright side, they'll still be in our heads, they just won't be able to talk."

After Arnold looked at her funnily, she said sternly, "What, why are you looking at me like that?"

When he cracked a smile and said, "You said 'look on the bright side'," Helga smiled and said, "Yeah, I guess I did. I need to start hanging out with Phoebe again, because you're wearing of on me."

Well, that certainly got a few hysterical laughs out of those two. After they received control of their diaphragm movement, they stood back up from their crouching and took a few deep breaths. Helga shook her head and said, "Okay, what about the whole 'kiss and go away' thing?"

Suddenly gaining back his seriousness, Arnold said, "Okay, I know this is going to sound really weird, but we, um, uh…" He started wincing from the embarrassment of what he was about to say. "We can't exactly kiss until it all blows over."

_What the heck is he talking about?_

_What the heck are you talking about, man?_

Helga cocked her head and closed her eyes trying to think of what to say to that. Man, it was hard. _Helga. Just say 'Why do you say that?'._

"Arnold," she put her index finger and thumb on her temple and pushed it off, "why the heck did that come out of your mouth? Explain."

_Well, you could say that, too, if you wanted to be more forward._

He shrugged and said, "Look, I don't know, but as long as Rhonda and Harold and Sid and everyone else is pushing us, I think it would be best if we kept Connie and Connor for a while. You know, to help us out. That's what they're here for anyway."

Helga didn't blink for a while. She just kept looking at Arnold strangely. She finally closed her eyes and said, "You know, Arnold, that was really weird, you know. 'We can't exactly kiss until it…' It was just bizarre in a certain way."

"Yeah, I guess so." He moved his hand to his mouth and yawned. "Whoa, what time is it? We still have school tomorrow, don't we?"

Helga closed her eyes half way and looked at her wrist, where, coincidentally, the only piece of clockwork was. "Wow, it's going to be eleven soon. Get out, Arnold, I'm tired, and I might just forget that I don't _have _to be mean to you if I don't get some sleep." She walked back over to her bed and lied back down and closed her eyes while still on top of the covers.

Arnold walked over to the door and was about to leave when he said, "Hey, you want something to snack on first? We've got chips, cereal, pork r-"

"NO!" Helga bolted upright in her bed and held her hands out as if Arnold were the devil. Seeing Arnold's face and his surprised look, she regained her lungpower and put her eyes back to regular size. "I mean, no, Arnold. I-I-I don't like eating things right before I go to bed." She mentally wiped her forehead and said 'Phew'.

Arnold shrugged what just happened off his shoulders, said good night to Helga, (which was returned by her) and closed the door. Helga stood up and turned the light off. The glow from nearby streetlights and buildings illuminated her way back to her bed, where she fell asleep with a smile on her face.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold, however, stayed up a little longer that night. After climbing up the retractable staircase up to his room and changing into his blue pajamas, he placed his head on his pillow and looked up through his skylight. That was always his favorite part of the room; he could see out into the city and see anything that crossed over the sky from that single spot. He stared dreamily up through the glass and thought to himself…well, and one more person.

Okay, look, Connor, why didn't you tell me this beforehand?_ What? Oh, you mean the whole 'kiss and go away' situation?_ Yes. _Well, you and Helga seem to have it all figured out, so if you don't mind, consciences need their sleep too, so… _I meant can you explain to me why you have to go THEN. _Oh, right. Well, according to the unofficial rule book, when dealing in the matters of an emotion such as romance, when the two in question kiss, that basically means that our up front needs are no longer needed and we must go back to stored persona. _Well, I guess that makes sense. _Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to rest up for tomorrow. _Oh, right, tomorrow….whatever.

And with that, there wasn't a sole person in the Sunset Arms boarding house that wasn't escaping into the depths of their own private dreams.

So, what d'you think about it? Not as many people are reading as before in the earlier stages, so I want to know if its lost its charm or not. Absolutely no one reviewed last chapter, but if any reviews this chapter, I'll be happy. Now, anyways, I've finished, and you guys can go ahead and click the little button next to the thing that says 'Review Story' and, well, review the story! Much appreciated. Happy Memorial Day, and Summer vacation is almost here!

Briana LFBH~~~          


	17. Bus Ride

Explanations

Hey, guys, how's it going? Hope you guys like this chapter! So, how's everyone's summer been? Mine has been boring so far, but expect quicker updating for Valentine's Day II and Time to Switch, and who knows, I think I'm going to pull Arnold's Surprise Guest from slumber, too. This is extremely long, and that's because I'm at my aunt's house and I'm really rather bored, so I just kept on typing with no place to stop! Well, anyway, here we go. 

Disclaimer: Lawyers expect for all of us fans to say chapter after chapter, story after story, that we don't own something that we are fans of. Apparently lawyers aren't as credible as we all like to think. ~Winces~ I meant not ALL lawyers, okay? Don't sue me for saying that, please? Fine, I'll be formal again. I do not own Hey Arnold's characters or "Somewhere Out There", okay?

  
  
"Hey, Arnold! Hey, Arnold! Hey, Arnold! Hey, Arnold! Hey…"

Arnold lifted a hand and pressed it on the miniature figure made in his likeness to stop the calling of his name. Of course, as soon as it was turned off, a digital alarm clock started playing the radio. "Somewhere Out There" started playing at Volume 8. 

"Down here in the atmosphere, there's garbage and city lights. You're gonna save our tired souls; you're gonna save our lives. Turn on the radio…"

Groggily and reluctantly, Arnold lifted himself from the comfort of his blue blankets and walked over to his closet, not bothering to turn off the radio. He really liked this song. He pulled out his usual garments of clothing, and as he was buttoning up his red plaid shirt, he heard a voice.

__

Man, Arnold, you must be really tired! Wake up your mind, boy!

The shock of hearing another person in his room caused him to almost rip his shirt as he bolted his eyes upward to look around the room. "Hey! Who's there? Who…Oh, I'm sorry, Connor." _Ah, no worries, Arnold. You have a real problem with remembering things in the morning, don't you? _Yeah. Kind of. Sorry, my head sort of went there for a second. _So…it's another day of school, huh? _Don't remind me. Man, having Helga to deal with is what I thought was bad, but this is just unbelievable. I mean, what's so bad about me like-liking her? Nobody knows what went-_Arnold; do you remember that discussion we had about you not like-liking her, but something deeper? _Look, okay, I might love her, but I'm only nine-almost-ten, okay? How am I supposed to feel to feel that strongly? I might in the future okay? _Helga seems to love and not like-like you. _Yeah, well, that's her. Look, okay, I don't know still! I just found out about this whole thing just over a week ago! _I'll let you work it out on your own, okay? I can tell that you appreciate my help, but sometimes I bother you. _That's not it, man. _Look, I'm inside your head, boy. I don't get all of them, but I am getting some signals. It's totally understandable. You kind of get to understand human emotions once you're in enough people's heads. _I can tell…look, I still have to finish getting dressed.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

__

Helga Geraldine Pataki, WAKE YOUR BUTT UP!

Helga jumped up so suddenly she fell off of her bed. Her heart raced about one thousand, three hundred and two miles per hour and her breath wouldn't stop trying to catch up. Once she calmed, she furrowed her brow and growled, "Connie, don't **ever** do that to wake me up **again**!" 

__

Sorry, but I had to wake you up somehow. Unless you didn't remember, school is on again for the second time. 

Helga untangled herself from the covers and stood from the floor. "How on earth could I forget? Another day of black torture." She walked over to her duffel bag and pulled out a fresh dress and a pair of socks. Thankfully, Phoebe's mother had washed the spare clothes she had forgotten at their last sleepover. "Look, Connie," she said aloud; "you may have to tune my nerves down or else I'll end up doing more than talking back." _Don't worry, I'm used to it. _Huh? What are you talking about? _Well, why do you think all you ever do is threaten? I've put some morality in you before this occasion, you know. _Oh, yeah? Well, how come you let me punch Brainy out all the time? _Hey, I'm not perfect! Except for that one time after that first session with Bliss…_ Point taken, all right?

She walked over to a small nook in the apartment and undressed and redressed. She walked out of the nook jumping on one foot and pulling a shoe on the other. Putting her foot down she sighed and jumped onto the bed. "Oh, why must such a momentous period of my younger childhood be wasted on the thought of my leaving this, to a comparison of my other home, utopia and facing a more brutal obstacle in life that is the torment setting in from my classmates?" 

__

Your poetic side? Yeah. Wish I had packed my pink notebook. _If Arnold saw that, wouldn't he…_ Stop making me think, all right? I'm trying to have it soak in before it ends, okay? _Yeah, but don't forget about why it must. What time is it, anyway? _I guess it must be somewhere around the time the…

OH, CRIMINY!

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Arnold lowered and jogged down the retractable staircase that led to and from his room. He was making his way toward the next set of stair down the hall to make his way toward breakfast…

"Oof!" "Hey!"

…When a large weight fell on his stomach and blew the wind out of him.

"Helga," he said hoarsely. "Can you get off of me, please?"

The source of the weight, namely Helga, scrambled up to her feet, breathing heavily. "Sorry…Arnold," she puffed out. "I…I just remembered…about school…"

"Yeah," said Arnold, thinking he knew what Helga was saying. "It's gonna be tough just like yesterday, huh?"

Helga rolled her eyes. "No! I mean yes, but it's gonna be even worse now!"

Arnold lifted an eyebrow and asked, "What are you talking about?"

Helga grabbed Arnold by the shoulders. "Arnold, I'm not at my house, I'm **here**, in **your **house. Do you know what that means?"

__

Oh, man, why didn't you tell me, girl?

Okay, that is bad. Very bad. Huh?

"Why would that be…?" Arnold started to say. Then realization dawned on him. "Oh, man!" He put his hands on his shoulders, where Helga's hands were, and said, "Helga, look, ok, we can just…" But he stopped when he saw Helga.

Helga let go of his shoulders, closed her eyes, and opened them, a sense of panic now residing in them. "This is just perfect! Everyone is going to see me walking to the bus with you, and they're either going to think I walked over here just for you, or what's true, spent the night! This is just going to give more stupid freaking material to Rhonda and Harold and Sid and…it was bad yesterday, but now!"

Great, now what am I supposed to say?_ Look, um, try to calm her down. _Just what I was thinking. _Then why did you ask me? _I got the vibe from you, I think. _Smarty pants. _"Helga, look, okay? We can just tell them why you are over…"

"That's not gonna work, Football Head!" She grabbed her hair in stress. "It'll just make it worse. I can hear it now! 'Look, Helga was so angry and sad about the way her parents treat her that she had to run away to hide behind her crush!' And I bet that I don't have enough time to get to my house! Only two days into school and my life is officially ruined!"

Arnold bit his lip and looked at Helga. She was right, of course. He had missed that detail because of his far-sightedness. He gave a go at helping, anyway. "Look, Helga, it's not that big of a deal." After an intimidating glance from Helga, he said, "Okay, so it kind of is, but it'll die down, okay, just like that thing with Iggy, me, and the bunny…uh, pajama thing."

Helga stared at Arnold and his slightly feeble attempt to change the subject. "Yeah, I stopped making comments on that after a few months. On Iggy's part and yours. I'm sorry about that." _Uh, Helga, what were you talking about? _I know that, Connie, just shut up, all right? 

"So," she said, shrugging her arms. "What are we going to do?" Just then, something came to her mind. "First, what you're not going to do is tell Gerald why I'm here, okay? I know that I may as well consider him my friend but he isn't going to know how my parents treat me sometimes, okay?"

Nodding his response, he started walking in the direction of the staircase again. "Come on, Helga," he said to her. "Let's eat breakfast first and then we can worry about it. Just think about what you can do with Connie."

Looking at her beloved, she obeyed and sighed. "I guess you're right, Arnold. But still, it is a problem. Just be prepared for some bad mocking, okay? It should be way worse from anything I've done to you."

He smiled to himself as he turned around. "I know that already," he muttered just loud enough for him to hear.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"Why on earth did your grandpa have to bring up me falling through the kitchen ceiling?" Helga asked Arnold as they walked down the stairs.

Arnold just stared at Helga. "You were the person my grandma thought was Eleanor Roosevelt? Why were you having breakfast with her that day?"

"Let's change the subject, okay?" she answered, remembering her sleepwalking predicament. She didn't want to think about that. Helga walked in the direction of the nearby bus stop and instinctively placed her hand on her shoulder; she felt nothing there. She hit her head and moaned, "Man, I forgot my backpack. All of my notebooks and pencils are in there."

"Don't sweat it, Helga," replied Arnold, who did have his backpack. "Concentrate on what you are probably about to face. Rhonda's always on the bus before I am."_ Her? What about you? Be prepared for intense interrogation buddy. _I know that, but she needs to be ready so she doesn't deck anyone. 

"Thanks for reminding me, Arnold," said Helga. "Exactly what I want to look forward to in my day." _He's right, though. Get ready for some fierce interrogations, girl. _You don't think I know that? I said I don't want to, not that I don't have to. _Cool your jets! I was just saying._

Then, suddenly, the four of them heard the unmistakable sound of a large vehicle, AKA the bus, approaching its destination. Both of the young adolescents breathed heavily and straightened their posture as the bus came, bracing them for unknown mental torture. (Okay, maybe not **that** bad, but still, it's bad.)

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

"ARNOLD? HELGA? Excuse moi, Helga, but don't you live a few blocks and streets from this particular bus stop? Did you make the long trip just to be with your precious Arnold? Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!"

Rhonda's taunting was heard, undoubtedly of course, all around the bus. But for some reason, there was less laughter than yesterday. Of course, Helga and Arnold didn't notice; all they heard was laughter and that annoyed them.

But Rhonda noticed; she noticed very well indeed. "Uh, hello?" she said to the people on the bus. "Helga lives far away, but she's at Arnold's house, and they came on as a couple? Does anyone here find that really weird?"

Murmurs followed her less than noble speech. 

"I thought so." She looked maliciously at the two that separated to seat with their best friends. "Why are you guys together at **this** hour, hmm? Were you lovebirds just so distressed without the other that you just had to see each other as soon as possible?" she asked mockingly. "Are you two under some sort of cosmic spell where your hearts pain for the others company?"

Helga's blood was boiling. Why can't that egotistic popularity queen shut up? _Helga, don't do anything drastic. _Grr… shut… the… freak… up!

"CLOSE YOUR GAPING TRAP, RHONDA-LOID, BEFORE I STITCH IT UP FOR YOU! Why is it such a big deal to you that I like him, huh? Huh? Be quiet about stuff that you don't understand, Princess, or it might just come out and bite you, and it'll be my teeth!"

__

Or go ahead and yell at her if you want. Whatever.

Silence stretched across the bus. Rhonda stared at Helga for a while, and then silently sat back in her seat next to Nadine. Nadine leaned over and whispered something in her friend's ear. Rhonda shook her head and gave her a look.

The muteness went on until the bus driver broke saying, "Uh…no yelling on the bus."

Conversation went on as usual…for the time being.

"Helga, I can't help but wonder why you were at this bus stop myself, especially since it is at the very corner of Arnold's block, and it could mean that you were at-"

"Look, Pheebs, it's a long story, and I need to cool off, okay? All my anger that was at her just blew up, so can I explain later?"

Phoebe nodded. "Agreed."

Helga rolled her eyes. Okay, she'd tell Phoebe now. She leaned close to her and whispered, "Look, Arnold called me on the phone and heard Bob and me having a fight. I didn't know it was Arnold, so I said some things about the way Bob and Miriam treat me and he heard the whole thing. I, uh, kinda sneaked into his room again and I found out he heard the whole thing, we started talking, it got late, and Arnold let me sleep in one of the boarding house apartments so that I wouldn't have to go home."

Phoebe smirked. "I supposed that's why you wanted your clothes." 

As we turn to a different part of the bus…

"Okay, Arnold, I'm kind of wondering why Helga was at your house, too, so 'fess up."

Arnold bit his lip. He really wanted to tell at least someone so the questions would lower a bit, but…_Remember what Helga said? _

"Sorry, Gerald, but I promised Helga that I wouldn't tell anyone, you included. Let's just say it's personal to Helga, okay?"

Gerald shook his head. "Whatever you say, man, just get ready for a bunch of rumors."

With a sigh, Arnold leaned back in his seat. "Tell me about it."

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

About everyone in the fifth grade class had asked Arnold and Helga why she was at Arnold's house. When they would tell anyone anything, they moved to their best friends.

"I'm telling you, I DON"T KNOW!"

"Come on," pushed Sid, "you've gotta know something! Arnold had to tell you at least one thing."

"Sid," said Gerald, "this is going to far. I do not know anything about this, okay? I know about as much as you guys do."

Harold, Stinky, and Sid surrounded had Gerald on all sides. Harold wanted something to pick on Arnold about, while Sid and Stinky were just plain curious.

"I bet he does know something," said Harold. "He's just hiding it."

Stinky tried his shot at it. "Come on, Gerald, we won't tell nobody anything 'bout this."

Rolling his eyes, Gerald responded saying, "Harold, I'm definitely not telling you, and Stinky, you and Sid can't keep a secret for beans. Remember the Iggy and the bunny pajama incident?"

"Come on, Gerald," begged Harold. "You have to tell us something…or I'll pound you!"

"Hold up there, big boy, don't go that far."

"Then tell us something! We're your friends!"

"Yeah, well, Arnold's my friend, too, and I wish I knew, too, but Arnold isn't speaking to me about, okay? Now don't bother me anymore! I need to go to lunch!" Gerald stormed off in the direction of the cafeteria.

Sid looked at his friends. "Look, maybe we should lay off of Arnold and Helga for a while. I mean, they look like they've been under enough stress over the last two days."

Stinky nodded in agreement. "Yeah, Harold, why do you have to go off and pick on Arnold anyways?"

"Because Arnold and Helga is just wrong! There's got to be something going on with those two that they aren't telling anyone," pondered Harold. "I say we keep pokin' at Arnold until he tells us why, and you guys better do it with me."

"Ya know…" started Stinky, "Now that it's been going on for a while (like for a few days), I guess there might be somethin' to those two likin' each other so much."

"Yeah, Harold, maybe we should just lay off for a while and see how it goes. I'm not sure it'll work, but we don't have-"

"Look, I'm the boss," interrupted Harold, "and I say we're doing it! If you aren't gonna do it, then leave!"

Sid and Stinky turned around to, as Harold said, leave.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Rhonda looked down the hall and grabbed Lila's wrist. She pointed at someone. "Come on, Lila. She ought to know something about it."

Lila bit her lip. "Gosh, Rhonda, I don't think you should…"

"Let's go get the dirt!"

Rhonda practically dragged her friend down the hallway by the arm. When they reached the person she wanted to talk to so badly, she let go, but only to corner this new person. "Hello, Phoebe. How's it been going for you today?"

Phoebe turned around from the inside of her locker and looked up at Rhonda's face. She placed a forced smile on her face. "Relatively well." She closed her locker and asked, "Is there something you'd like to ask me, Rhonda?"

Her eyes lit up. "Why, yes, there is. I was wondering if Helga has talked to you lately."

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "And why, may I question, do you ask that?"

Shrugging, Rhonda said, "You know, I'm just curious, I mean, Helga is the center of the talk around school right now, isn't she?"

"I don't know anything about Helga being at Arnold's house," lied Phoebe.

"Come on, Phoebe, you must know something! You're her best friend! There has to be a reason why Arnold and Helga were at the bus stop together!"

"Rhonda…"interrupted Lila; she was ignored.

"I'm sorry, Rhonda, but I will not betray my friend's trust."

"So you **do **know something!" exclaimed the Gossip Queen. "Tell me, please, Phoebe."

"Why are you so enthralled in the Arnold and Helga event, anyway? You didn't go in so deep when Arnold liked Lila. Sorry, Lila."

"None taken," she answered quietly.

Rhonda straightened herself and closed her eyes, and said as-a-matter-of-factly, "Because Arnold and Lila are perfect for each other. I mean they're so nice, good, and sweet, and Helga is just so mean and cruel, and if I don't mind saying so, a bit on the ugly side. It just doesn't seem like a good match to me."

"Does it really matter what you think, Princess?"

Phoebe smiled at the irony of what just happened. You see, someone was listening from behind Rhonda's back most of the time Phoebe was asking this…. Of course, she just now noticed it. But then she flinched inside at the thought of what she might do.

Helga strode up next to her best friend and looked coldly at Rhonda. _Whatever you do, just don't punch her. _I know, Connie. I know. "It's none of your concern why I was at Arnold's house, and it isn't you who decides whether or not I should like him, too. Butt your powdered nose out of my social life, and I'll keep my fist away from your jaw, deal?"

Rhonda scoffed and turned on her heal. "Come on, Lila, we're leaving that little ingrate and her friend."

Watching as her friend walked off, Lila figured Rhonda wouldn't miss her while she pouted. Instead, she turned to the two girls who were also looking at the leaving Rhonda. When they turned to her, she sighed and frowned. "I'm ever-so sorry about the way Rhonda has been acting. She sees good gossip and she dives for it."

Phoebe smiled and said, "It's quite all right, Lila."

"Yeah, yeah, thanks," said Helga, but then said, quite nicer, "Yeah, thanks Lila. I appreciate it."

Lila smiled her sweet smile.

"LILA!"

"Coming, Rhonda!" She took one last look at the two girls and walked off.

Once Lila was out of hearing range, Helga sighed and turned to her best friend. She said, "Come on, Pheebs, let's go get some food."

Smiling and adjusting the book that was under her arm, Phoebe responded, in her usual chipper tone, "Going." With that, they headed in the direction for the cafeteria.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

Helga and Phoebe left the lunch line, carrying trays filled with Salisbury steak, corn, tapioca pudding, and milk, one chocolate and one regular. Helga started heading for the two's usual table, but Phoebe hesitated. Biting her lip, she turned to look at a different section of the cafeteria. When Helga noticed that her friend was no longer accompanying her, she turned and saw her staring back and forth from one side of the cafeteria and back to the table they ordinarily used, as if trying to decide something. 

"Phoebe," said Helga questioningly, "what are you looking at?"

Being jerked out of her thoughtful stage, she looked at Helga. "Um, Helga, don't you think we ought to…"

"Ought to what?" Helga looked in the direction Phoebe was looking at. "Ooh, no you don't. I'm not stirring up anymore…"…

!@#%^&*()_+{}:"?

"What are you guys doing here?"

"What's it look like, Hair Boy? Never mind, Phoebe talked me into sitting here…not that I wouldn't mind, Arnold."

"Didn't think it, Helga."

"Wait a minute, I'm **Tall** Hair Boy, Arnold's Hair…hey, what am I saying?"

"She got you, Gerald."

Phoebe giggled. Helga laughed out loud.

"Ugh…"

Yes, Phoebe was indeed thinking about sitting at the other end of the cafeteria, where Arnold and Gerald were sitting. According to Phoebe, it would 'save us from Arnold yelling across the room again'. The girls didn't share this thought with the boys, though.

"Hey, Arnold," said Gerald, taking a sip of milk. "You know what? Sid, Stinky, and Harold tried to tell me why Helga was at your house. I told them I didn't know, of course, since you didn't tell me, but I was wondering…" He took a quick bite out of his steak, "Have people stopped bugging you about it?"

Arnold thought for about two-point-three seconds, but before he could speak, someone interrupted.

"Rhonda did the very same thing to me, Gerald," spoke Phoebe, leaning forward in her chair. "She cornered me at my locker and started pressuring me for an answer. In fact, I kind if made her speak badly about Helga in front of her on accident."

"As I was going to say," said Arnold after Phoebe finished, "yes, they are kind of. Guess they got the hint that we weren't telling, huh, Helga?"

"I'd definitely say so." Helga leaned back, taking a sip out of her chocolate milk. "I don't think Rhonda's going to give up, though. If Phoebe and Gerald don't cave in-"

"How am I supposed to cave in if I don't know anything about it?" exclaimed Gerald, leaning over in his seat, looking square at Arnold and Helga. ""Helga, are you ever going to tell me?"

Helga smiled mischievously and playfully. "What do you think?"

Gerald winced, equally playful. "I'm thinking," he said, "that you probably won't tell me until my dying day. Great, huh?"

Helga laughed loudly again. "Look, Gerald, I'll tell you when I'm ready, okay? The only reason I let Phoebe know…"

"You told her and not me?"

"Think about it, Gerald, she's my best friend, I only even started befriending you yesterday! Anyway, the only reason I let Phoebe know is because she already knows the backbone of why on the first place. As I was saying, if you two don't cave in, then her and Harold will most likely start going drastic. Maybe not Harold, he's not as hard-push as Rhonda is… I'll bet you anything she'll start stalking all four of us if she takes it to far."

After the short little speech, Gerald said, "You know, about the Sid, Stinky, and Harold thing (I never did finish talking about it), after I left, I stopped at the corner to tie my shoe. I swear that I heard Sid and Stinky actually sticking up for you guys. They didn't exactly believe you two would work out," he added quickly, seeing the extremely shocked faces of Arnold, Helga, and Phoebe, "but they did think that they should lay off for a while."

Phoebe smiled. "Perhaps acceptance is approaching our friends quicker than we expected, hmm?"

The other three looked at each other and shrugged. "Yeah, maybe it is," they all said in unison.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

About five minutes ago…

Nadine and Lila walked to their table where Rhonda was already sitting, whispering to each other.

"Lila, I really think we should. You know, for their sake."

"I know, Nadine, it's just that it's going to be oh too difficult."

"Come on, at least we can try. You said it yourself that it will most likely work out between them."

Lila smiled guiltily. "Yeah, I guess I did, didn't I? Well, I guess so, for their sake."

"Good. Thanks, Lila."

"What are you two whispering about?"

Nadine and Lila bolted their heads up to find themselves at their table. "Nothing," they said together as they took a seat on either side of Rhonda. 

To make the fact that they were trying to do, well, what they wanted to do, a little less obvious, they passed the time by eating and listening to Rhonda talk about some pair of shoes she wanted to buy. 

"Nadine? Nadine!"

"Huh?" She jerked out of her intense stare at the mesh she made from her potatoes. 

Rhonda looked at Nadine like she had a really bad haircut, then continued. "I asked you if bell bottoms should be in season or out. It's really quite an arguable subject." 

Nadine squinted as if Rhonda were giving of an extraordinary light. "Oh, um, in I guess?"

Rhonda smiled as if she had just won a great big, stuffed teddy bear. She turned in her seat to face Lila. "What about you? I'm thinking of starting a poll on the Internet." Before Lila could answer, however, Rhonda shifted her gaze and her eyes fell upon a certain table. "Oh, it makes me sick to think that anything could end up that way, doesn't it? I know I've said it before, but I think Arnold could do much better than that."

Suddenly, both girls became more aware of what Rhonda was saying. Smirking, Nadine looked where Rhonda's gaze had landed. Gerald was making hand movements at Helga, then stopped, looked surprised, and everyone at the table started laughing. "I don't know, Rhonda…" Nadine started to say, looking at the foursome and then back to Rhonda. "It looks like those four are pretty good friends. Maybe it's not as weird as you think that those two like-like each other, hmm?"

"Nadine!" Rhonda exclaimed, looking overly shocked. "Seriously you can't think that there must be something going on that we don't know about!"

"Actually, Rhonda…" said Lila, waiting again for her friend to look at her. "Nadine is right. I mean, it started during summer vacation, right?" She waited again for Rhonda to nod, then continued. "There's a ton of stuff that could have happened, even in that short time that we didn't see him very often."

"Lila, that was one week. How could anything like this happen in one week!"

"Let us finish," said Nadine. "Look, we see Helga everyday, right? Well, maybe, since she tends to be a bully that's usually all we really care to see. Ever think of that?"

"If, and that's a **big **if, you're right, then that still doesn't explain why Arnold is so infatuated with her. So Helga **might** be different. That doesn't mean Arnold should like her so much. So what, she's still mean, stubborn, and utterly unfeminine. Sure that last trait may have been okay for when we just turned nine, but now we're ten, okay? Arnold's supposed to like pretty and always nice girls, like Ruth and Connie and Lila. This just doesn't make since to me."

Lila cleared her throat. "Rhonda, like Helga said earlier, it's just ever-so not concern, really. You can ponder it all, but I'm certain that you pestering them because you don't understand won't make it all right for what you think is orthodox. It's just oh-too wrong for you to make fun if them when all they've done is like each other, like you used to like Har-"

"Shush!" Rhonda jumped and covered Lila's mouth with her hand. "Not out loud."

Nadine and Lila looked at Rhonda in expectation. Rhonda rolled her eyes and sighed. "Look, what you two are saying may be true, and I guess I should lower the gossip…a little bit. But I swear, I will find out exactly how this all happened if it takes me all year. What you guys are saying is pretty unbelievable…maybe you are wrong."

Sighing, Lila and Nadine looked at each other. Perhaps what they did didn't make Rhonda become a saint towards the two in question, but at least they knew, even if she didn't flat out admit it, that she was considering the thought.

!@#$%^&*()_+{}:"?

The lunch bell rang and the fifth and sixth graders exited the cafeteria.

On the way back to Mr. Packenham's class, Arnold, Helga, Phoebe, and Gerald were walking and, for one of the first times for the two days, they didn't meet up with anybody trying to get something out of them. (If it wasn't people picking on them, it was someone trying to get information on how it happened.) But they did, however, meet with two girls they knew quite well.

"Hey, Nadine. Hi, Lila."

Lila smiled. "Hello, Arnold. Helga, Gerald, Phoebe."

Nadine frowned and walked up to where she was slightly in front of Lila. "Guys, listen. We, that is, Lila and I, we thought that we could try to convince Rhonda to stop poking in on the whole Arnold and Helga deal."

Arnold looked at Nadine pleadingly. "Please tell me that you guys didn't get into a big argument and that you guys are still friends." _Is that really important? _Um…no. 

There was a second and a half pause.

"Never mind."

Gerald looked at the two who had just walked up. "Really? What did she say about that?"

In doubt, Helga narrowed her eyes a bit, but said, "Yeah, what did she think about it?"

Lila thinned her lips and thought for a moment, as did Nadine. After a few seconds, Lila said, "Well, she said that our attempts to convince may be true, and that she might lower the gossiping, but she's determined."

"And you know Rhonda when she's determined," broke in Nadine. Everyone took a moment to think on that. It was true. When Rhonda wanted something, she usually did whatever necessary to get it. 

Phoebe looked at her watch. "Girls, it's distinguished that Rhonda is considering, but if we don't leave now, going up to the second floor will take us beyond the five minute maximum…"

"We're going to be late," interrupted Helga, grabbing her friend's hand and running in the direction of the closest staircase. Gerald, then Arnold, Nadine, and Lila followed shortly after them.

Well, saved by the bell, I guess, again. The story alone without the credits was 5,190 words. Dang, that's long for a chapter for me. Anyway, how'd you like it? Give me your thoughts in a review.

GUYS, HELP! Whenever I look at chapter 16, it ends at "No," said Arnold. "I want to. Tell me people if it's like that on others, too, because there' a lot I have to type if it is. (I kind of deleted it). Tell me, it's urgent, half the story's after that. If I'm yelling for nothing, tell me. Thanks! Bye!

Briana LFBH 


	18. Author's Note don't report me!

Explanations

Dear Fanfiction.Net Readers

You are all going to find my address and strangle me in my sleep. Well, hopefully something less drastic, but you will be sort of mad at me if you're a fan of this story. I am, sadly, being forced to take a sabbatical on my writing. My mother's computer is very, for lack of a better term, jacked up at the moment. The only reason I'm able to be on the Internet and typing this now is by grace of my father's computer. I will be able to read, review, and answer email, however, if you've been paying attention to some of my before-story-author's-notes, then you know that my dad has a very low-rate computer with almost no memory. So I am not able to save many documents unless he gives me permission to or the file was already there and I just erased something. For more information regarding these facts, please visit Through the Compact Disc and read the Author's Note.

In the meantime, I will be working on original stories that I have high hopes for(and of which I'm not going to post on the Internet... I'm gonna see if I can get them published first!). They are Relative Envy, High Expectations (a series of six), Virginal Hearted, and a by-product of Through the Compact Disc, of which I'm still looking for a title of. I have basic storylines for every single one down and have started production on these, so if you would like a preview or summary of these, just give me a digital jungle and I'll give them to you, straight up!

I hope that you are all patient with me, as I must be patient for my unlimited typing and saving rights. I am able to finish the next chapter of My Hair is Down, however, so be looking for that soon!

Thank you!

Love HA, HP, and Ani Forever!

Briana Loves Foot Ball Head, AKA: BB, AKA: Bubbles


	19. Wanting a Happy Ending

**Explanations**

It's finally here! Oh, thank God, when you're awake at 3 am writer's block just doesn't exist! I can't STOP writing! I wrote this, most of the following chapter, the finale of Through the Compact Disc (the chpater in between is halfway through, 2 chapters left guys!), and I've already updated Fallen. Hopefully you all haven't forgotten me, or Connie and Connor here . Well you probably want this as fast as possible... so TADA!

The phone rang next to Gerald's head. He sat up from his bed and picked it up, smiling. "This is Gerald Johansson," he said stylishly, "how may I help you?"

"Hello Gerald," said a voice fro the other end. "I'm sure you know who this is."

Gerald at first didn't recognize the voice, but a quick check of his caller ID told him the identity. He narrowed his eyes and growled, "What do you want Rhonda?"

"How'd you know it was me?" Rhonda cried, as if it should be a complete mystery.

Gerald almost smiled. "Well, you see Rhonda, there's this really cool thing called technology that-"

"Save the sarcasm, Gerald," interrupted Rhonda. "I need to talk to you, since you seem to be on the inside."

"No," he said, and moved the phone to the hook. He could hear Rhonda's protests from arm's length. He dropped his head in annoyance and against all his better judgment moved the phone back to his ear. "Hey."

"I know you weren't going to hang up on me, Gerald!" she yelled into his ear. She continued ranting like this until someone with her shushed her and reminded her of whatever it was she had called for. "Oh, yes, of course. Thank you, Lila."

Lila? Gerald glared into the phone. He thought Lila was on their side. Why was She bothering him along with Rhonda?

"Anyways, I apologize for my tirade," she said, much calmer now. She almost sounded civilized. "Well, Gerald, I have a few simple questions to ask you. For most of them, all you have to do is say yes or no!"

"This isn't for some crazy gossip column, is it?"

"That depends on how agreeable your information is."

"My information on what exactly?" he asked innocently. It was obvious what it was, but he wanted to play around with her mind as much as he could.

"About Arnold and Helga!" she exclaimed. "I mean, it's rather obvious that something completely outrageous happened to cause this crazy event." She laughed at the humor she found in it all. "I know that you can't stand Helga. Frankly, neither can I, so I figured that you and I would be on the same team to help our good friend."

Gerald was confused now. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Well, this coupling is outrageous!" Rhonda said as if it were obvious.

Gerald actually agreed. It was outrageous, but apparently for Arnold it wasn't. He'd already vowed not to try to intervene or poke the subject. No way was he going to help Rhonda.

"I think that Helga did something to Arnold to make him agree," she continued. "Now, Lila here told me to call you and ask you whether or not you think this whole thing is valid or not."

So Lila wasn't them. She was trying to find a way to convince Rhonda to leave them alone. That was one concern off of his back.

"Listen, Rhonda baby," he said casually. He didn't want to start her up again. "Trust me on this: I'm not crazy about Helga. I didn't like her at all until today."

"So you agree with me, then."

Gerald grinned. "Actually, I couldn't disagree with you more."

"What?" Rhonda asked, taken aback. "But you just said-"

"What I said," he interrupted, "was that I didn't like Helga very much. But I'm not Arnold, am I?"

"Look, answer my question, Johansson," she replied. "My impatience is growing."

"You never technically asked a question."

"Do you think Arnold make a good couple or not?" she yelled.

"Yes!" he screamed back. "You know what else I think? You and your constant prying into other people's lives is possibly the most uncool thing I've ever seen you do."

Rhonda gasped dramatically while Gerald smiled with satisfaction. "How dare you insult me like that!" she said, sounding utterly weakened. Gerald could almost feel her anger slowly rise, even though she was silent. "Perhaps you believe this complete nonsense is true," she growled, "but I am sure that more people are on my side than yours."

"Rhonda you're being just so ridiculous!" Lila argued from the other end of the phone.

"No, both of you have been brainwashed or something," said Rhonda. "Even if I must do this alone, I will make Arnold see the error of his ways by deciding to date that hoe."

"What did you say?" Gerald yelped, shocked at her use of words. She'd finally crossed the line. "Don't call her that, you obnoxious snot!"

"You're defending her, too?" Rhonda cried. "This is just precious! Don't you remember all the nasty things she's done to you and your best friend?"

"I sure do," he said angrily, "but I also know that the way you're acting right now is probably worse. You've joined up with her, too. Might I remind you of the Lila incident?"

"Oh, don't start comparing me to her!"

"Compare this!" he yelled, slamming the phone on the hook. He breathed heavily for a while, and then groaned loudly and landed on his bed. His hair hit the wall and he sat up as quick as lightening. Maybe he should call Arnold and tell him about this… no, he already had enough on his mind without him helping.

!#$&()+

**You know, some people would call me and Arnold schizophrenic for talking to the voices in our heads**. _What would it be called, then? Double-person Schizophrenia? How are you and Arnold going to happen to have the same mental illness and symptoms at the same time? _**Good point**, thought Helga. **At least we didn't get any homework tonight.**

Helga was rubbing her temples, trying to calm herself. She considered going up to her attic… wait that was done with now. Her memory must have lapsed for a moment. So… what was she supposed to do now? She'd already talked with Phoebe on the phone, and ruled out calling Arnold. Hadn't she already spent the night with him?

No. What she felt the need to do was writing.

But what would she write about? For too long her writings were all about desire, hoping, wishing, dreaming about this happening. She reached across the desk she was sitting at and grabbed a journal from the pile she'd kept from her Arnold shrine. She laughed at the thought of her shrine… wow, how many sins was that thing accountable for? Then she laughed at the fact that she had been laughing in the first place. In such a short time she'd grown out of that shrine. She didn't need it anymore now that she was certain she had the real thing with her.

"Hmm… that's something to start with," she hummed, flipping to the last blank page. She used her pen to draw a line underneath her last entry, a symbol of a change in feelings.

_So… you know what you're going to write about now, I see. Good choice. _**Thanks, Connie.** _I'm really proud of you, Helga. _**Me, too. Thanks. I never thought I'd use my conscience so much, really.**

She took her pen, curled up in the chair to where her nose was almost touching the paper, and began to write a new genre that she'd rarely ever felt the need to express before: happiness.

!#$&()+

Arnold laughed as he passed the newly mashed potatoes, courtesy of Ernie, around the table. His grandma had just entered in what may possibly be her biggest getup yet; a fully decked out clown, red nose and big shoes included.

"Aw, Pookie, who buys you these things?" moaned Phil while she walked over to her seat.

Grandma chuckled and honked her horn in response, setting down a cream pie in the middle of the table. No one touched it and those closest to it inched away cautiously.

"I think it's funny," commented Arnold, taking a bite of the turkey and gravy. Personally, he didn't know why Gerald was so wary of the food. Maybe it was because he had that allergic reaction to the pecan pie…

A few minutes in to the dinner, a faint ringing could be heard from the hallway. Grandma sighed and walked out of the room, her feet squeaking with each step. Arnold shook his head and continued eating.

_How exactly did you get a quarter of your genes from her?_ **Not sure, really.**

Grandma's colorful face popped out from the doorway. "Arnold, a young lady's on the phone for you."

**Helga,** thought Arnold with as much excitement as curiosity. "Thanks Grandma," he said, moving out of his seat and rolling his eyes at the rather loud whispering from behind him. "Yes, Oscar, I do have a little girlfriend."

"What I do?" asked Oscar, promptly being hit by Susie.

His grandmother handed him the phone and jumped happily into the dining room. Arnold smiled and shook his head, then put the phone to his ear. "Hey," he said, "what's up?"

"Hello, Arnold," said the voice

Arnold scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. "L-Lila?" he asked.

"Yes, it's Lila," she relied in a sweet voice.

"W-why are you calling me?" he stuttered. _Calm down, buddy!_

Why was he freaking out? It was just Lila, right? He was so over her… great, now the more he thought about it, the more nervous he got. Why did she have to have such a pretty voice? _Arnold, focus! Lila may be pretty, but what does Helga have again? _**That… that inner beauty thing. Right?** **But… Helga's pretty too, who said she wasn't it? **_Yay, that's done with, now listen up!_

"Arnold… Arnold are you there?" asked Lila.

"Oh!" he cried. "I'm sorry; I just got a little lost in my head for a second. Now… why did you call me?"

"Arnold, I have to tell you," she whispered. It was obviously important by the urgency of her voice. "Rhonda's angry… I mean she's just very, very angry. I don't really understand why, but she is, and she called Gerald… actually, I told her too, I thought it would calm her down a bit, but it didn't. They had this just ever so loud fight and now Rhonda's determined to convince just everyone that you and Helga shouldn't be accepted. She wants to ruin your reputation and even worsen Helga's."

Arnold stood shocked. He fell against the wall, thinking about nothing but the situation. Great. He thought he had problems before, but now this. She didn't only resent it; she wanted to murder it. He'd seen Rhonda get crazy before, but usually it was in a civilized manner.

Was this so against the laws of elementary law that it sent Rhonda into a blind rage?

You know, now that he thought about it, it wasn't so surprising.

"What do you think she's going to do, Lila?" he asked.

"The most powerful thing she could do: write an editorial in the school paper."

Arnold closed his eyes in defeat. Ugh. Helga was going to absolutely hate this. She'd be angry on the outside and inside she'd be freaking out in panic. Arnold gritted his teeth and tried to regain his composure. "Okay," he said, "maybe not everyone will believe her. I mean, Rhonda can turn around can't she? She has before."

"I'm honestly not so sure," said Lila in disappointment. "I'm sorry, Arnold, I feel like this is my fault that-"

"It's not your fault, Lila," he said. "Thanks for telling me."

"I just wanted to prepare you," she said.

"Yeah, thanks for the warning," he said. He smiled sadly. "Bye."

"Good night," she said, and with that both of them hung up the phone.

**Well… no problem. We got through today. At least now I'm ready for it right. **_Good way of looking at it. Is it smart? Is it appropriate for the event? No. But you've gotten through a bunch of stuff on sheer hope that it'd be a happy ending, right?_** That's the only reason why I'm even hoping. Because it's happened before.**

With that Arnold took his hand off of the old black phone and walked in to the kitchen, where he saw an awful lot of cream covering Oscar's face.

A/N:Four pages, 2,000 words, 9,000 letters not including spaces. Not nearly enough to make up for the enormous time gap, but at least I'm not in major writer's block anymore. I hope some of my old readers got to this, and I really hope I don't loose it again on this thing. It's too damn close to the end for me to! Expect around three or so chapters left, plus a nifty little epilouge.

I've started an account at Fiction Press under my new pen name. As soon as I finally post the first chapter of the original Through the Compact Disc, I'll give you the link. Until then, just go to go to "Fiction", and look for the story by JadedMyths. It's the first chapter, so check it out why don't you?

Briana Loves Foot Ball Head (heads up: soon to be JLFBH, okay?)


	20. Freedom of the Press

Explanations

King Cheetah: I'm planning on doing the same with Through the Compact Disc. The first few chapters definitely need it.

The JAM: Whenever I get to a good stopping point on my catch-ups, I'll be reading more of other people's that I've missed. I've got you and King Cheetah on the list, okay?

SkaterGirl13: Whoa, had to look that word up despite my so-called book-vocabulary. But thanks for the criticism; I'll try not to do that. Thanks for the comment as well!

Thought you all deserved a quick update. A note about the consciences: if anyone here is a Megatokyo reader, I'd just like to say right now that Connie and Connor are similar to Seraphim and the CEA. I didn't rip the idea off of them, but the conscience organization is quite similar, only Seraphim is physical and not mental.

Helga sat in her usual backseat, leaning one shoulder against the window and flipping through her old journal. She sighed dreamily, being caught up in the romance of her own wishes.

What was starting to annoy her was the constantly repeating theme of Arnold in every last one of them. Even she was getting bored reading the same things again and again. She flipped back a few pages to what she'd just written the night before in her emptied closet. Yes, there was nothing significant there, but she felt a sense of security in the cramped space. She excused it with habit.

She heard someone walk over to the seat next to her and just stand, waiting. Without looking up she said, "Take a seat Phoebe."

"Thanks," said Arnold, "but you got the wrong name."

Helga jumped up and slammed the book shut, stuffing it between her and the bus's wall protectively. Arnold sat next to her on the edge of the seat, so that he was halfway in the aisle. There was plenty of room between them, but Helga didn't point that out.

"What were you reading?" he asked.

Helga shrugged and squeezed the book further away from his reach. "Nothing. It's just an old favorite."

"Oh really?" Arnold looked at her suspiciously. It turned Helga's insides to jelly. "Can I see it?"

Helga glared at him. "I hate it when you do that. I always have."

"Aw, come on Helga," he pouted, trying with all his might not to laugh. "Please can I see it?"

"If you're trying that hard, there's no way you're getting it!"

**God, will he just stop trying to get it!**

"Why not?" he asked. He smiled cunningly. "It's not a book is it?"

Helga set her face in stone. "Duh," she said harshly. "And I'd appreciate if you would stop trying to get it."

Now Arnold wasn't in such a playful mood. He had been trying to play off his anxiety about Rhonda, of which he still hadn't told Helga about. Arnold arched his neck far enough to recognize the book beside her as one of the books he had seen in her attic. So that's why she didn't want him to see it.

"Sorry, Helga," he said. "I'll leave it alone."

For a moment Helga was silent, but then she exhaled and pushed herself against the bus seat. "No, I'm sorry. I need to stop acting like such a big jerk around you."

"I'm still sorry, though," he said.

A moment of silence washed over the two of them for a while until Helga took the book from its hiding spot, flipped it to a page near the back, and handed it to him. "That's the only one you get to see, too!" she warned. "Don't think I will give you special treatment, either."

"You're so funny, Helga," he said, taking the book and reading the poem quickly. He nodded in approval. "I'm not the best person to ask about poetry, but that's pretty good."

She smiled and took it back. "I wrote it last night, along with like three others. I haven't actually written anything for a while… ever since the whole Scheck thing."

The bus pulled to a stop and Arnold looked out the window. "Gerald is coming in now."

Gerald walked up the stairs to the passenger level and looked around for Arnold. It took him a while to find him, and even then Arnold had to wave frantically. He mad his way through the aisle to the seat in front of them. "Hey, Arnold my brother," he said, holding out his fist. Arnold hit is own against it and they did their thumb wiggle.

Helga smirked at the gesture. "Don't suppose you guys plan on sharing that with me, eh?"

"Some things a man keeps sacred, Helga," said Gerald, laughing. He stopped when he saw the looks he was getting form the other two. "What?"

"You either had too much sugar coated cereal this morning," said Helga.

"Or you're trying not to tell me something," finished Arnold.

Gerald looked at them with fright. "Okay, that's weird. You two are already finishing each other's sentences."

"Answer, Gerald," said Arnold exasperatedly.

Gerald grimaced but got to say it. "Well, I think that Rhonda's-"

"Yeah, I know," interrupted Arnold.

"Jeez, man!" Gerald cried, hitting the back of his seat. "Let people say what they want to say!"

Helga turned to Arnold and said, "What about Rhonda?"

Neither of them answered for a while. It was obvious what it would be though.

"Aw, Criminy," moaned Helga, hitting her head against the seat in front of her. "Oh, I swear if she does anything to tick me off today she's going to pay!"

"Arnold and Helga sitting in a tree! K I S S in a-"

"Shove it up your pie hole, Berman!" yelled Helga, rearing up against Harold in the hallway, her fist dangerously close to his nose. He smiled nervously and backed down.

Phoebe looked like she was ready to burst a vessel in her forehead. "Oh my goodness, I can't believe the immaturity!" she cried, twitching her hand a bit as her and Helga walked to class. "I mean he's what, fourteen now? Ugh, sometimes I just want to…" she made a small fist and started punching her book hysterically.

"Whoa!" said Helga, holding up her hands. "Calm down. Hey… Hey, Phoebe!" Helga had to grab her hand to keep her from breaking her fingers. "Phoebe, you're glasses were about to fall off."

Phoebe took a few deep breaths and relaxed her shoulders. "I apologize for my behavior, Helga," she said weakly. "I lost control."

"Oh, please, do it more often," she replied, clapping. "Just not in overdosed quantities, that's just unhealthy."

"Well, at least it's not as bad as yesterday, right?" noted Phoebe. "I mean Harold stopped talking with one look at Old Betsy."

"So he's not as big of an idiot as he looks," said Helga thoughtfully.

Phoebe giggled. "Oh, Helga, you're terrible!"

Together they entered the classroom, taking their seats in Mr. Packenham's class. Helga placed her books on a desk near the middle of the room, Phoebe sitting next to her. She watched people enter the class until she saw the familiar blond hair enter and sit in the front of the class nest to Gerald.

She cleared her throat quietly and looked down at her paper, starting on the math problem on the board for their daily warm-up.

That afternoon, during their lunch period, Harold sat next to Sid and Stinky, two rather forgiving friends when it came down to it. He was looking rather downcast, actually, and absentmindedly pounded his mashed potatoes into even more of a runny pulp with his spork.

"I just don't get it," he said softly, glancing toward the table where Helga, Arnold, Gerald, and Phoebe sat. "Why the heck would they end up like that? It's just so confusing!"

"Then how come you're always picking at them about it?" Stinky asked. He was confused, as well, but he had decided long ago to leave Helga in the peace of her decisions. Unless they were cruel or offensive in anyway, he just tried to let her be. It was the kind of person Helga was, something he had figured out after their little experience. In fact, recent events answered a lot of questions he'd had about that. Now he knew why he was hired on, at least.

Harold shrugged. "Because!" he snapped defiantly.

"Yeah, but it's kind of stupid," mumbled Sid. "Especially after what happened with you and Patty, you'd think you'd tone it down a bit."

Struck short of a comeback to that remark, Harold stopped talking for a while. Finally he sighed. "You guys just don't get it," he breathed, hitting his potatoes so forcefully that a blob flew out of his plate and splattered the table.

It was at that moment that the doors of the cafeteria banged open so loudly that the entire cafeteria simultaneously snapped their heads in the direction of the disturbance. Rhonda, along with three other younger girls and one sixth grader, stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips and a smug look on her face. Judging by her air of pride, it was apparent that she was about to do something that would change someone's life.

In the dead silence, the sound of a large head hitting a table echoed. "Oh, man," groaned Arnold, fearing the worst.

"What's her deal?" Helga whispered in an annoyed tone. She cast a concerned glance at Arnold. "And what was that for?"

"You didn't tell her?" hissed Gerald, bending toward Arnold. "Why did you not tell her?"

"Didn't tell me what?" growled Helga through gritted teeth. Her impatience for bad news would soon be rewarded.

Rhonda pulled a cart from the sixth grader's hands and pushed it toward the middle of the cafeteria. The cart was covered in a dark blue blanket, covering a pile of whatever it was Rhonda was so proud of. At this point there were whispers bouncing around the room. "Extra, extra, read all about it!" she said loudly, whipping back the blanket to reveal the first edition of the Weekly Word for that school year.

"It's just the stupid newspaper!" Helga said in angry confusion, whipping her head back to Arnold. His head was still on the table, as if he was trying to hide from whatever was bothering him. "What's the problem?"

"Do I have to remind you what part of the paper Rhonda's in charge of," Arnold said, "_and_ what her recent target has been?"

Helga paused and then hit her head on the table next to him. "Mind if I join you?"

"Go right ahead," he said, his voice muffled.

"Wait a second!" Helga said, popping back up. "I have to see this for myself." She pushed her chair back and stood up. A crowd had already collected around the cart, busily the contents. Helga spied a look at the front cover and saw it was just a welcome back article the staff had undoubtedly encouraged. That was a small relief; whatever she had planned wasn't the first thing that came to attention.

However, as she walked to the cart, she realized there were eyes watching her. Glaring at her. Disgusted at her.

**What fun. **

She swiped a newspaper from the cart, people still eyeing her. She scowled, and then turned to the page the gossip column was usually on. She read the headline, gasped, and yelled, "Get your butt over here, Princess!"

"What's the matter, Helga?" asked a familiar voice from behind. "Afraid that the truth be known?"

Helga spun around and tossed the open page onto the cart that separated her from Rhonda's innocent face. She pointed to the article and cried, "That is no where close to the truth!"

In large, bold print, about a picture taken of Helga and Arnold (neither of whom looked happy), read "BLACKMAIL, DECIET, AND LIES: FORCED INTO A RELATIONSHIP BY SCHOOL BULLY."

"Yes," said Rhonda with a strange calm. Her hands were behind her back as she read. "That seems rather truthful to me."

Helga growled, and only by warnings of her conscience did she keep herself from throwing the cart aside and knocking her to the ground in a fit of rage. "Brainwashing the whole school to your side of thinking through the press is pretty low… though not unexpected."

"I seem to remember you doing the same," Rhonda replied, a snarling grin on her face. "Might I recall the tree that I'm sure you wished you could've been?"

From a distance, separated from getting to Helga by the thickening crowd around the two girls, Arnold stood on his chair watching. "This really isn't looking good," he said to Gerald.

"I so do not play with dolls," muttered Gerald.

"You have no idea what has gone on with Arnold and me over summer break," cried Helga. She threw an accusing hand at the crowd. "None of you losers do! This crap about me forcing Arnold into anything isn't truth, just some stupid accusation!"

"How dare you!" Rhonda snapped. "I'm only trying to help Arnold. How many of you here would think that Helga and Arnold would actually agree to going together?"

Mumbles of uncertainty rose from the crowd behind her. But it was at that moment that someone stepped from behind Rhonda and said in a strong voice, untrue to her usual character, "I do."

Rhonda turned angrily to look behind her and then gasped. "Lila!"

Lila crossed her arms and looked at Rhonda with disappointment. "Rhonda, you're usually so nice. Why are you acting like this?"

"She's nice?" asked Helga with a frown.

"I am being nice," Rhonda said. The way she voiced it, it was apparent that she was convinced she was behaving nicely. "I'm trying to get Arnold out of another of his big mistakes."

"This isn't a mistake Rhonda," Lila argued. "You could ask him yourself right now if you wanted."

"Trust me, I'm not being forced into anything!" yelled Arnold from the other side of them room. He waved his arms to get attention and consequentially lost his balance, falling off of the chair.

"Arnold!" cried Helga, taking a step towards him.

And it was at that climatic moment that the bell decided to ring. Before the crowd would carry Lila away, Helga shot a grateful look to her former foe for trying to help in a fight with her new one. Lila smiled, and that was the last she saw of her before she left the cafeteria.

Helga looked up at the ceiling and begged whatever deity existed beyond it for a chance at peace as Rhonda walked briskly away. A few students made a point in pushing past her, only to be pushed with opposite but greater force by Helga.

She hung her head, feeling a bitter sensation of defeat by Rhonda. She felt a pressure on her shoulder and looked at it. It was a hand. She traced it to an arm and then to Arnold's face. They met eyes, and Helga said in a voice rarely heard from her, "Everyone believes her." Her voice actually sounded sad.

The sound of her voice struck through Arnold's heart. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her, but she was limp in his arms, unwilling to hug him back. She was so sad, even her feelings for Arnold couldn't prevail.

"It doesn't matter, Helga," he whispered, trying to reassure her. "In time they'll learn they were wrong to listen to her."

Finally Helga grasped Arnold for dear life, her legs beginning to buckle. "It's not just that," she breathed through her teeth, holding back the emotion. "It's the fact that the way I acted towards you is what set us up for this crap."

"Well, yeah, we probably could have done without all of that," Arnold said. _Stupid_, said Connor in his mind.

"Exactly," she said, letting go of Arnold and standing up. "We really ought to get to class… where are Phoebe and Gerald?"

"They already went to class," said Arnold. "We're about to be late."

Together they walked out of the cafeteria, but not before Helga pushed the cart, newspapers fell all over a table, and they had to run away to not be caught.

So… tada? All right, listen, I'm expecting three to four chapters left here, including the prolouge I believe I've mentioned. I'm going to shoot for three, because I want to get this over ASAP so I can go to other ideas I've had. So, review, ask questions and you'll get answers, and I might be motivated a tad bit more.

You Gotta Love Me

BLFBH


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